GM403

Rhymney Upper Furnace  

02/07/1979  

Designated  

Caerphilly  

Rhymney  

310857  

209168  

Industrial  

Blast Furnace  

Post Medieval/Modern  

The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Ancient Monument. Rhymney Upper Furnace comprises the remains of an Industrial blast furnace. The furnace is said to be the first Rhymney furnace of 1801. If this is the case, it is the sole survivor of the first generation of single coke fired blast furnaces in South Wales. The site lies in a field at the foot of a steep west facing bank. It consists of a portion of the base of a blast furnace made of vitrified and corbelled grey-black brick. It stands 2.3m high on the west side, sloping down to the ground-level on the east side. The diameter of the furnace is 3.5m. The bank to the east and north of the furnace has been cut vertically, and further south there is slag in the scree below the bank. The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance and illustrate our knowledge and understanding of the development of the iron industry in Wales. It retains significant archaeological potential, with the strong possibility of the presence of associated archaeological features and deposits. A blast furnace may be part of a larger cluster of industrial monuments and their importance can further enhanced by their group value. The scheduled area comprises the remains described and areas around them within which related evidence may be expected to survive.