RD108

Cae-Banal Castle Mound  

 

Designated  

Powys  

New Radnor  

317262  

258893  

Defence  

Motte  

Medieval  

The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Monument. The monument comprises the remains of a motte and ditch, dating to the medieval period (c. 1066 -1540 AD). A motte is a large conical or pyramidal mound of soil and/or stone, usually surrounded by either a wet or dry ditch, and surmounted by a tower constructed of timber or stone. This site occupies the local summit of a steep south-easterly facing spur which overlooks the confluence of two streams. It is c.33m in diameter and c.3.8m high, with a slightly hollowed summit measuring c.17m north-south by c.15.5m. The motte is surrounded by a ditch up to c.1m deep on all sides except the east, where the natural slope is steepest; on the south-east there is a c.10m length of counterscarp c.4m wide and c.0.5m high outside the ditch. The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of medieval defensive practices. The monument is well-preserved and an important relic of the medieval landscape. It retains significant archaeological potential, with a strong probability of the presence of both structural evidence and intact associated deposits. The scheduled area comprises the remains described and areas around them within which related evidence may be expected to survive.