DE286

Wat's Dyke at Crispin Lane, Wrexham  

12/03/2003  

Designated  

Wrexham  

Rhosddu  

332998  

351188  

Monument  

Linear Earthwork  

Early Medieval  

The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Ancient Monument. The monument comprises a stretch of Wat's Dyke, an early historic boundary marker probably associated with the border of the kingdom of Mercia. Both Offa's Dyke and Wat's Dyke probably represent separate attempts in the 8th century to formalise the boundary between the early historic kingdoms within Wales and Mercia to the east. Wat's Dyke runs south from Holywell to the Morda Valley near Maesbury. For the most part, Wat's dyke consists of an earthen bank, often utilising local topography and fronted, where it survives, by a ditch to the west. The size of the surviving earthworks varies considerably, reflecting differences in preservation and probably also in the original scale of construction. These two sections of Wat's Dyke are bounded to the west by Crispin Lane where it is probable that the modern road overlies the original western ditch. The northern section measures some 80m long x 10m wide x 1.5m high. The southern section measures some 75m long x 8m wide, increasing in height from 1.0m at its southern end to 2.0m at its northern terminal. The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of early medieval defensive organisation and settlement. It retains significant archaeological potential, with a strong probability of the presence of associated archaeological features and deposits. A linear earthwork may be part of a larger cluster of 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. It is in two parts with a rectangular northern section measuring 80m x 10m, aligned on the monument. The southern section is also rectangular and measures 80m x 10m, aligned on the monument.