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This page summarises the current state of understanding of this important Roman site. The summary on this page is supplemented by details of each phase of exploration of the site (history of research).
Plan of the Caergwanaf site. The fort ditches are indicated unfilled, showing the parrot's beaks at north and west gates. The later ditches are shown in black. Enclosure A is not well-known at present, but may include stone-built structures. Enclosure B is coaxial with the fort and has a well-marked entrance to the east; it may be a late 1st century fortlet. Enclosure C is a ditched enclosure which apparently cross-cuts both the fort and possible fortlet. It dates from the late 1st or early 2nd centuries. Occupation associated with Enclosure C and the iron-working platforms on the slope to the east appears to be mainly early 2nd (or latest 1st) to early 3rd centuries. Later 3rd to early 4th century was recognised in the area immediately outside the fort's west gate. The pale grey tone indicates the approximate extent of post-fort Roman occupation, with the major slag dump in dark grey. The scale bar is in metres.
The earliest identifiable occupation appears to be the fort. Pottery in fort ditches at the west gate suggested that the fort was constructed during the period of early Flavian military consolidation in South Wales (A.D. 70-75)and was abandoned about a decade later (A.D. 80-85). The fort was of timber construction and had an area of approximately 1.6ha, so probably had a garrison of a cohort of 500 auxiliary infantry soldiers. Geophysical evidence suggests that the fort may have been replaced by a fortlet, but this is currently untested by excavation.
The fort and/or fortlet was superseded by the large ditched enclosure certainly by the early 2nd century and possibly before the end of the 1st century. It seems likely that the use of the working platform was also of this age. Terraced working platforms can be parallel at Sherracombe Ford, an iron-working site on the edge of Exmoor. The large scale of the iron-making and the relatively high-status pottery both suggest an "official" aspect to the site. The relatively quiet geophysical signature of the northern fort ditches suggests that large-scale iron-making may not have commenced until after their backfilling, but some iron slag was recovered from upper levels of the ditches at the west gate.
The 2000 geophysics provides some hint that structures on the same alignment as the later ditches, rather than the fort, may lies close to the northern side of the ditched enclosure. The noisy geophysical signature of this area and the low resolution of the 2000 survey preclude their certain recognition however.
The estimated slag content of the main dumps is of the order of 10,000 tonnes. The main iron-making phase appears likely to lie within the 2nd and 3rd centuries. No evidence for 4th century activity has yet been found within the main iron production area, although occupation of this period seems to have occurred towards the west of the site. This general age range and the site size are comparable with some of the large sites in the Weald (e.g. Bardown). Both the Wealden sites and the Exmoor sites are currently linked with military control.