Reasons for Designation
Offa's Dyke is the longest linear earthwork in Britain, approximately 220km,
running from Treuddyn, near Mold, to Sedbury on the Severn estuary. It was
constructed towards the end of the eighth century AD by the Mercian king Offa,
and is believed to have formed a long-lived territorial, and possibly
defensive, boundary between the Saxon kingdom of Mercia and the Welsh
kingdoms.
The Dyke is not continuous and consists of a number of discrete lengths
separated by gaps of up to 23km. It is clear from the nature of certain
sections that differences in the scale and character of adjoining portions
were the result of separate gangs being employed on different lengths. Where
possible, natural topographic features such as slopes or rivers were utilised,
and the form of Offa's Dyke is therefore clearly related to the topography.
Along most of its length it consists of a bank with a ditch to the west.
Excavation has indicated that at least some lengths of the bank had a vertical
outer face of either laid stonework or turf revetment. The ditch generally
seems to have been used to provide most of the bank material, although there
is also evidence in some locations of shallow quarries. In places, a berm
divides the bank and ditch, and a counterscarp bank may be present on the lip
of the ditch.
Offa's Dyke now survives in various states of preservation in the form of
earthworks and, where sections have been levelled and infilled, as buried
features. Although some sections of the frontier system no longer survive
visibly, sufficient evidence does exist for its position to be accurately
identified throughout most of its length. In view of its contribution towards
the study of early medieval territorial patterns, all sections of Offa's Dyke
exhibiting significant archaeological remains are considered worthy of
protection.
The section of Offa's Dyke in Mocking Hazell Wood, 400m south of Lindors
Farm, survives well. The bank will have preserved part of the original
ground surface, predating the construction of the monument and, along with
the ditch and counterscarp bank to the west and the quarries to the east,
will contain environmental evidence in the form of organic remains which
will relate both to the Dyke and to the landscape within which it was
constructed. The bank will also contain evidence relating to the methods
of construction of the monument and the building materials used.
Details
The monument includes the buried and earthwork remains of Offa's Dyke,
400m south of Lindors Farm. Offa's Dyke generally consists of a bank up to
3.5m high with an intermittent ditch to the west and quarry pits to the
east. In places it was strengthened by additional earthworks, namely a
berm between the bank and ditch, and a counterscarp bank on the western
lip of the ditch.
This 288m long section of the Dyke is visible as a bank, with a ditch and
counterscarp bank to the west and quarry pits to the east. The bank is
about 10m wide at its base and stands to a height of between 1m and 2m.
The ditch is between 3m and 4m wide and up to 0.4m deep. It is not
visible towards the northern end of this section of the Dyke, having
become infilled over time, but will survive as a buried feature. To the
west of the ditch is a counterscarp bank approximately 1m wide and 0.4m
high. The quarry pits to the east occupy a 4m to 10m wide area and are up
to 1.9m deep. A forestry track cuts across the Dyke towards the southern
end of the section, but it is not thought to indicate an original crossing
point. The northern end of the section marks the end of a break in the
line of the Dyke stretching for about 0.7km. At the southern end of this
section the Dyke has been truncated by a hollow way.
All drystone walls are excluded from the scheduling, although the ground
beneath them is included.
MAP EXTRACT
The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.
