Banc Du facts for kids
Banc Du is a unique hill in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It is part of the Preseli Hills in the north. This hill is about 334 meters (1,096 feet) high.
In 1990, experts found something amazing here. They saw it during an aerial survey. Banc Du has old earthworks on its hilltop. These are like ancient walls or ditches. They form a rough oval shape. Around them are signs of old farms and paths.
The hill has steep sides to the south and west. It also has a rocky edge on the south-east. From Banc Du, you can see far across the land. It overlooks the start of the Afon Syfynwy. Banc Du is interesting because it sits between open fields and wild moorland. People used to farm here long ago. Now, it is used for grazing sheep.
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What We Know About Banc Du's Past
Surveys show that people lived or worked on Banc Du at different times. There are three main periods of activity.
Later Activities
The most recent signs are from farming. You can see "ridge and furrow" patterns. These are lines in the ground from old plowing. This farming was probably linked to a settlement. It might have been a long house or a small village. This settlement was downhill to the north-west. It was likely from the Middle Ages or later.
Before that, there were two curved paths. These paths seem to have led to a single long-house. We don't know if these paths were used at the same time or one after the other.
The Oldest Structures
The oldest things found are the earthworks. An inner earthwork creates an oval space. It might have been open on the east side, near the rocky edge. Outside this, there is an outer earthwork. It starts at the rocky edge. Then it goes across the narrow part of the hill on the north side. After that, it curves around the west side. It runs close to the inner earthwork to the south.
Digging for Clues
In August 2005, archaeologists dug a small trench. They found that the old bank was about 3.8 meters (12.5 feet) wide. It was about 40 centimeters (16 inches) tall. It seemed to have been built on an old ground surface. They also found holes for wooden posts. This suggests the bank might have had timber inside it.
The ditch next to the bank was 2.8 meters (9 feet) wide. It was up to 1 meter (3.3 feet) deep. It had a U-shape. Scientists used radiocarbon dating on materials from the ditch. This helped them find out when things happened. The first mud in the ditch built up around 3650 BC. Material from the middle of the ditch was from 3000-2600 BC.
Scientists also looked at pollen from the site. This showed that when the earthworks were built, the area was mostly heathland. There were some small woods with oak and hazel trees.
Why Banc Du is Important
Banc Du might be small, but it tells us a lot. It helps us understand how people lived in the area thousands of years ago. This was during the fourth and third millennia BC.
Banc Du is the first confirmed neolithic enclosure in Wales. It is also the first in the mid-west of Britain. It's special because you can still see the earthworks on the ground. When Banc Du was first built, it was around the same time as other huge ancient tombs. These include the long barrow at Pentre Ifan. That site is only 7.5 kilometers (4.7 miles) north. Another is the passage grave at Bedd yr Afanc. That one is 6 kilometers (3.7 miles) to the north-east.
