Monument Type(s):

• BOUNDARY BANK (Early Saxon to Mid Saxon - 410 AD to 800 AD)
• DYKE (DEFENCE) (Early Saxon to Mid Saxon - 410 AD to 800 AD)
• FRONTIER DEFENCE (Early Saxon to Mid Saxon - 410 AD to 800 AD)

Summary

Scheduled Monument: A well preserved section of Offa's Dyke, the 8th century Mercian boundary bank.

Related records

Associated Finds: None recorded

Associated Events

• ESA6373 - 2009 WB on Offa's Dyke by SCAS
• ESA8532 - 2018 WB on installation of footpath furniture on Offa's Dyke Path at Lower Mount by SCAS (Ref: ODP18 LM)
• ESA8632 - 2018 Heritage impact assessment of proposed barn at Mardu (in relation to Offa's Dyke) by J White (Ref: 18/01919/FUL)
• ESA9483 - 2021 WB on footpath furniture improvements, Offa's Dyke Path, Hergan by SCAS

Description

Scheduling of section 575m north west of Myndtown (formerly part of Salop 78 and Salop 79, now 32598] revised in 2004. Scheduling description: ->

-> The monument includes the earthwork and buried remains of a section of the linear boundary known as Offa's Dyke 575m north west of Myndtown. Offa's Dyke generally consists of a bank, up to 3.5m high, with an intermittent parallel ditch and quarry pits in places. It was strengthened in some areas by additional earthworks, namely a berm between the bank and ditch and a counterscarp bank on the outer lip of the ditch. ->

-> In this section the Dyke is 1.5km long, running between the south side of the road from Cwm Farm at Hergan to the north bank of the brook which flows south of Lower Mount. To the north of this section, the construction of the road has damaged the Dyke and this area is not, therefore, included in the scheduling. ->

-> The northernmost end of this section survives well, with the bank, ditch and counterscarp bank visible as earthworks approximately 18m wide following the contours of the land as far as the field gate at Lower Mount. Throughout this section the Dyke takes the form of a small bank on a terrace cut into the hill slope above a massive ditch with a pronounced counterscarp bank on the western side. Below the defences the ground falls away rapidly. To the north of Lower Mount a post-medieval quarry and a trackway on the north east side of the Dyke have modified the earthworks. In addition a second trackway crossing the Dyke from the north west has resulted in a gap in the Dyke at a point 110m north west of Lower Mount. The base of the bank and the ditch will survive as buried features and are, therefore, included in the scheduling. ->

-> At Lower Mount the Dyke has been modified by agriculture and the construction of outbuildings, although the bank and ditch will survive as buried features and are included in the scheduling. To the west of Lower Mount, the Dyke is visible as a bank in the garden of the house running as far as the road to the south of the farm. The base of the bank and the ditch will survive as buried features beneath the road and are included in the scheduling. ->

-> To the south of the road the Dyke is visible as a bank as far as the northern bank of the stream 90m to the south of Lower Mount. ->

-> The spring at Ffynnon-y-Saint wells out of the southern side of the Dyke. The water flows into a metal tank and the overflow is piped across the Dyke to run down the slope to the north. The name of this feature suggests a healing or a holy well, but there is no record of any tradition of visiting the well for healing purposes. ->

-> Further sections of Offa's Dyke immediately to the north and 30m to the south are the subject of separate schedulings. ->

-> All post and wire fences, the water tank at Ffynnon y Saint, stiles, garden rockery features, a septic tank at Lower Mount and the road surfaces are all excluded from the scheduling although the ground beneath them is included <1>

Watching brief carried out on this section of the dyke, at Hergan, SO 261 854, in 2009, on the replacement of two finger posts. No archaeological remains recorded. <2>

A watching brief was undertaken at 3 locations along Offa's Dyke path at Lower Mount, Mardu, in 2018, association with the installation of footpath furniture. These locations were closely spaced centered on SO 261 842. No archaeological features were observed. <3>

A heritage impact assessment was carried out for a proposed barn, in 2018. It provides an assessment on the impact on the setting on this section of the dyke. <4>

This section of the dyke was photographed during aerial survey in 2009. <5><6>

A watching brief was carried out on 2021 footpath work at Hergan, which involved the setting of a new fingerpost on the Dyke at SO 2593 8519, and the removal of an old stile and its replacement with a new kissing gate on the line of the Dyke at SO 2579 8482 where the dyke crosses a slight valley between Hergan and Myndtown hills. No significant archaeological features or deposits were encountered. <7>

Sources

Search results generated by the HBSMR Gateway from exeGesIS SDM Ltd.