() is a

hillfort A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roma ...

dating back to the

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

. The name means 'town of the giants', from , plural of , 'giant'. The settlement is located above sea level on the slopes of , a mountain on the north coast of the

Llŷn Peninsula The Llŷn Peninsula ( cy, Penrhyn Llŷn or , ) extends into the Irish Sea from North West Wales, south west of the Isle of Anglesey. It is part of the historic county of Caernarfonshire, and historic region and local authority area of Gwynedd. Mu ...

in , north-western Wales. Evidence suggests the settlement was first built around 200 BC, though most of the archaeological finds date from AD 150–400, showing the site continued as a settlement during the Roman occupation. is one of the most spectacular ancient monuments in Wales. The settlement is surrounded by stone walls that are largely intact, and which reach up to in some places. Within the walls are ruins of about 150 stone houses, which would have had turf roofs. During Roman times, it may have housed up to 400 people. Historian John Davies suggests that because the settlement is so far above sea level, the huts served as habitations for summer shepherds who also had winter dwellings in the lowlands. In modern times it was first brought to popular attention by

Thomas Pennant Thomas Pennant (14 June Old Style, OS 172616 December 1798) was a Welsh natural history, naturalist, traveller, writer and antiquarian. He was born and lived his whole life at his family estate, Downing Hall near Whitford, Flintshire, in Wales ...

in his ''Tours of Wales''. Its location and importance have attracted visitors for years. The hillfort has recently been the site of conservation work and footpath maintenance. An extensive survey was made in 1956.

References

External links

''Tre'r Ceiri'' webpage (snapshot 16/05/2019 17:07:48)

Museum of Wales (snapshot 25/08/2021 15:17:01)

Coflein online database for the National Monuments Record of Wales (NMRW)
{{coord, 52.9745, -4.4240, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Llanaelhaearn Archaeological sites in Gwynedd Hillforts in Gwynedd Former populated places in Wales

See also

References

External links