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could determine whether they are of Roman or Mediæval manufacture. In the adjacent pig - stye, a dark-coloured tile was noticed, let into the wall. It is said that several such tiles are to be found in the neighbourhood, and these will be hunted for.

Some critics may argue that the results are not conclusive, but taken in the light of the following facts they may fairly be held as fully sufficient to establish the direct route of the Roman road to Kanovium.

(a) It leads to a fordable point on the river.

(b) The almost complete subjugation of North Wales occurred, according to Professor Haverfield, 78-90 A.D., after Agricola's expedition to Mona.

(c) The established Camp of Kanovium was limited in area; sufficient only for probably not more than five centuriæ, say, half a cohort, with perhaps a small accompaniment of horsemen.

There was little fighting to be done, and possibly only a small force was needed to keep in order the surrounding tribes, whose camps were near by.

Segontium, though a more important station, was not of much larger size, and could not have contained many more soldiers. Thus there was no necessity for a great military road into North Wales (via militaria) such as is found elsewhere in Britain. Making their pioneer route, it may be assumed that the Roman engineers subsequently improved it by placing a rubble foundation. Traffic could not have been great at any time, the road perhaps almost exclusively a military one, and it only needed such firm deposit as would be afforded by 12 in. to 15 in. of rubble. There was no occasion for the various statumen, rudus, nucleus, and summa cresta, as was the rule for important roads. Mr. Codrington again, p. 393, speaks of the Roman Road found near Sandbach, which was identical in structure with that of Ffordd Las, and not very dissimilar from the other sections. cut on this expedition.

(d) Roman roads varied in character as may be learnt from Mr. Codrington's book, and that on the same subject-by Messrs. Forbes and Burmesterboth which any future investigators into the extremely interesting matter of Roman roads would do well to master. The great trunk roads (militaria), the subsidiary military roads (limites), ways and lanes, should be understood; these last divided into L. Actuarii, 20 ft. to 24 ft. broad, and L. Linarii, about 8 ft. to 10 ft. or more, as needed. Ffordd Las, and the rest of the track worked out, answers to such description. Other roads of different titles need no present comment, though the whole country is a network of traditional Roman roads.

It may be assumed with confidence that the course sketched on the map was made out and used by the Romans during their occupation, and that the track was traversed to and fro by Suetonius and Agricola a little piece of sentimentality that is, perhaps, permissible!

The work done could not possibly have been accomplished in the nine hours devoted to it but for the generous assistance and co-operation of Lord Aberconway and his son, to whom sincere thanks are due.

Further investigations will be proceeded with whenever possible. Indeed, many routes have already been walked over and points marked down. Much hope is felt that Milliaria (mile stones), or boulders frequently used in default of cylindrical or squared stones, may yet be found, the former to add to the Milliaria of the reigns of Hadrian and Septimius Severus, now in the British Museum. Additional papers will be submitted on completion of any important section, and though the assumed position of Varae is outside the area chosen by The Nant Conwy Antiquarian Society as their special ground for research, it is intended to spend some time in the neighbourhood of Denbigh and St. Asaph to endeavour to determine that place, but only

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after establishing the route further backward from Llangerniew.

The location of ruins of such stations as mansiones,

mutationes, and the various Inn names used by Romans, have to be looked for in field and place names, now unintelligible to Welshmen, or indeed most men of any nationality. They are not infrequent, and show that the Roman occupation was extended.

Place names have a certain confirmatory value— such as Gwaedllyd-the name of a field (the bloody field) near Ffrith Ivan on Ffordd Las, and in the same district Pen y Fyddin, which may mean ambush-a troop or an army.

HADRIAN'S MILESTONE.

an

The accompanying illustration of this cylindrical stone, now in the British Museum, will give interest. It was found at Rhiwan, Llanfairfechan, North Wales, buried in a field adjoining the lane. It is about 6 ft. 9 in. long, with a diameter of 19 in., tapering to 16 in. at the top, bearing incised Roman letters 24 in. to 2 in. in size.

IMP. CAES. TRAI
ANUS. HADRIAN .
AUG. PM. TR P

PP. COS III

A KANOVIO
MP VIII.

This stone, of the third year of the Emperor Trajan (119 A.D.) is one of the earliest known examples of Milliaria found in Britain, and gives the distance from the spot where it was found to Kanovium, as 8000 paces-about the exact length of the road.

Curiously another, but broken milestone of the time of Septimius Severus and Marcus Aurelius, towards the end of the second century A.D., was subsequently found only 10 yards away. Such stones are of great archæological interest, and, seeing how Wales is covered by a net-work of Roman roads and tracks, there should be others in existence-broken and mutilated perhapsthat have escaped the vandal house and wall-builders; so far, only ten Milliaria have been found in Wales.

PREHISTORIC REMAINS, LLANBEDR,

MERIONETHSHIRE.

THERE are at present in existence near Llanbedr, in Merionethshire, numerous prehistoric remains lying between the hills on the east and the sea on the west. Among these the most numerous are the series of circular heaps of stones, of which there are four or five groups not so very far from the village. For our present purpose let us consider three.

The most southerly, and most extensive group, lies a few hundred yards or so west of the old road to Dolgelly, in a field

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called Bwlch y Cae, on the top of a hill overlooking the village which is about a mile away. The heaps continue at intervals nearly as far as a farm called Bron y Foel. In close proximity is a ruined dolmen and two solitary menhirs. There are also further groups of stones higher up on the hillside.

The second group, which the owner, Mr. Griffith, kindly permitted me to examine, is on the top of a tiny hillock above Plas Gwynfryn, and the third on the heights between Llanfair and Harlech.

To discuss the first group. We were first attracted to explore them partly by their general appearance and partly by the expressions of the farmer of the land, who suggested that they were "very, very old," and hinted darkly at little

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