MARCH 2011

The weather has been fantastic allowing me to go on various walks in my area. My favourite is Barclodiad y Gawres, which is only down the road from my home. I like to take in the 360ᴼ panoramic view around me when on the top – scanning the Snowdonia range all the way down to Bardsey Island and then in the opposite direction, along the coast towards Holyhead Mountain. This picture of Awen, my granddaughter however, was taken on a windy day last October.



Barclodiad y Gawres is the remains of a decorated passage grave from about 2,500 BC. Its Welsh name means “the giantess’ apron” – the legend describes a giantess flying over from Ireland and dropping her apronful of stones here! I rather think it must have been a witch giantess, as the remains of what one associates with witches cauldron were excavated on the site, such as the remains of a toad, eel, shrew, mouse, grass snake and a hare. You can find all about the site on the web. Like in the picture I took, you can peer into the inner chamber through the locked bar gate. However, If you wish to go inside the inner chamber, you will have to do a prior booking by phoning the Wayside Stores ( 01407 810153 ). They hold the key and will meet you there during any of these allocated opening times:
APRIL – OCTOBER, SAT & SUN 12pm – 4pm + BANK HOLIDAYS.


A letter appeared in the local Anglesey Mail this month, the person demanding that the National Museum should return all the Llyn Cerrig Bach artefacts back to Anglesey. There are two sides to every story, as they say, and I felt I should make my view known in a reply letter, for which I received only positive feedback. This is what I wrote:

“As a retired teacher and the daughter of William Roberts, whose decision to dredge Llyn Cerrig Bach resulted in the discovery the artefacts, I wish comment on two articles in last week’s Mail.

Over the years, I have been in discussion with various curators at the National Museum in Cardiff, regarding returning some of the Llyn Cerrig Bach artefacts. It has become clear to me, that they will never be in a position to be able to return the main original items. Along the years, these have always been on display in permanent exhibitions in our National Museum, as they are at present. This is because they have by now become world famous in the field of archaeology, with visitors, not only from the UK, but all over the globe coming to view them. We have been able to have a number of artefacts back on loan over the years, but like in the National Museum, they had to be viewed in humidity controlled glass cabinets. I myself have put on permanent display in Oriel Ynys Môn, three Llyn Cerrig Bach artefacts that were donated to my father and these have to be displayed as such, for their preservation.

I have spent many years presenting their story to schools and adult groups. About three years ago, I realised that the best asset for explaining the Llyn Cerrig Bach heritage on Anglesey, would be to have excellent replicas made of the main items from the hoard. This is because replicas can be handled and examined, rather than being observed as originals in a glass cabinet. The National Museum in Cardiff gave Oriel Ynys Môn, shortly after its opening, a replica of the famous gang chain, which it still has. I have taken this amazing chain to all my presentations and this has always been the highlight of the event. (pictures prove this on my blog). I could not have done this with originals. I have managed to raise over £4,000 towards the production of more quality replicas. This money has been handed over to Oriel Ynys Môn. Pat West, the Principal, assures me that their production will be starting soon this year. I agree entirely with her article in your paper, that the island’s heritage needs to be presented in a realistic way. I shall be thrilled when these valuable replicas are made.

There is a hologram of the crescentic plaque due to come on tour to Oriel Ynys Môn from Llandudno museum in May. It seems already viewers are having difficulty in recognising the original from this 3D hologram because of the excellent modern production techniques available today. Sean Harris has made fascinating animated films with computer graphics, with various Anglesey school children contributing to the production. This depicts the story of Llyn Cerrig Bach and also other famous sites on Anglesey.

I visited the Tutunkhamun exhibition in Manchester this month. Here again the replicas were as good as the originals and much more accessible. Tourists from everywhere flocked to see them even though they were replicas.

As you can see, a lot of us have been working really hard for many years, transferring the story about the Llyn Cerrig Bach artefacts to adults and children alike.”

Those of you, who have followed my blog, will know that I have been campaigning for years by now to have such replicas produced.



Last week, I had a special treat of giving my talk to a group of people who have succeeded in becoming fluent Welsh speakers. Brenda Wyn Jones, their tutor deserves such praise, as she is so dedicated and successful in her work. Andrew, in the front row, is holding a copy to the exact dimensions of the crescentic plaque, which Alan, my husband, has made until we get the real replica produced in bronze.
After the talk, we were invited by Tecwyn, Brenda’s husband to view his studio. Here he has made beautiful sculptures based on the Mabinogion, the Welsh Medieval tales. The biggest pleasure I had though, was to be shown an etching depiction he had produced of Llyn Cerrig Bach, which you see here. He insists it still needs improving on and is going to give me a signed copy of the final etching.

FEBRUARY 2011

February has passed in a whirl of activities so my apologies again for missing a month’s entries!
I was invited by a group of ladies in Valley to give my presentation on Llyn Cerrig Bach. They were very interested in the subject, as the lake is right on their doorstep. They particularly enjoyed handling the replica of the Gang Chain, as you can see from the picture.
Having had to hand over to the Oriel, over a year ago, the funding I’d collected for producing more replicas, I am still anxiously waiting for the good news that perhaps some of them have finally been made. It will be a great thrill for me when this happens, as I know from visiting various schools, how much the children like to examine replicas, rather than seeing an untouchable original.

I became very concerned when I saw that the roadside wall in front of the Pencarnisiog commemorative standing stone had collapsed. This is known locally in Welsh as Maen Hir. I contacted our Cadw warden for this area and she came over immediately. However, since its on private land she can only express our concern to the landowner. Hopefully, he will get the wall rebuilt as soon as possible. This is a very important stone as there is a Roman style inscription on it to Cunugusus – CYNGVSIHICIACIT. This is from where the name of the village Pencarnisiog derives.


I had a very interesting visit from Mark, a mature student at Bangor University. He is on his final year and doing research into comparing votive offerings into such watery places as Llyn Cerrig Bach. He was very interested in some seismic maps I had been given by Dr. Phillip McDonald when he was a research student at Cardiff in 1995. I e-mailed Philip, who is now a lecturer at Belfast University, and he kindly gave me permission to forward copies to Mark. I am looking forward now to reading his final paper.
Like many others, Mark expressed his appreciation of being told so many personal background facts that I’d researched and been told by my father about Llyn Cerrig Bach.
I have decided, therefore, that I should take the step forward into filming a DVD of my lecture presentation. When I become too decrepit to voice the lecture, or even when I’ve popped my clogs, at least this information won’t be lost!


Rhys Mwyn, who writes an article each Wednesday in the Welsh Herald section of the Daily Post, asked if he could visit me. He wanted to write a column about what I knew about Llyn Cerrig Bach. We visited the lake and had a long chat. I was very interested when he showed me excellent replicas of Bronze Age tools that Dave Chapman had made in his foundry in the Conwy valley.


A fortnight ago, my husband and I visited the Tutankhamun Replicas exhibition at Manchester. Because of so many visitors in the museum when we visited Cairo, we had failed to get in to see the originals. However, the replicas were as good as the real things and so easy to observe at close quarters. I’m sure we gained much more experience from this visit than we would have had in Cairo looking over other peoples’ shoulders and being made to move along all the time. Here, we were able to browse and take as many pictures as we liked. I was fascinated with the tomb chariot, noticing especially that there was a plaque similar to the Llyn Cerrig Bach one, attached to its shaft, as you can see in the picture I took. I couldn’t help noticing also other similarities with the chariot’s form and its wheel hub. All these things in spite of it being made in Egypt over a thousand years before the chariot parts found in Llyn Cerrig Bach.

2011 - JANUARY 6th

Blwyddyn Newydd dda i chi gyd – Good New Year to you all.
What snow we experienced here on Anglesey,. Our back garden was like a scene from fairyland and so beautifully quiet.



One present I had for Christmas was the wonderful detailed illustration of the votive scene as depicted by Tony Daly, which my husband had framed for me. This brought happy memories back of our visit to his studio at the National Museum in Cardiff.

As it is copyrighted, I'm afraid you will have to view it at my Powerpoint presentations only!

Dominic, a family member, agreed to write an account for me about his experiences at the Bryn Gwyn site, Brynsiencyn in December. (Dom is on the extreme left of the picture).



“George Smith from the Gwynedd Archaeological Trust and a team of volunteers has returned to carry out further excavations at the Brynsiencyn site Bryn Gwyn. The Bryn Gwyn site is famous for having two standing stones standing within a field boundary wall which may have been part of a henge monument erected in the late Neolithic period around four thousand years ago.
The first excavation carried out in 2008 was to establish if indeed the standing stones were part of a ringed henge monument and to try and locate any potential existing stone holes that maybe lying beneath the surface. The site turned out to be very interesting as two remaining stumps of what were clearly at one time standing stones, one being on a circular alignment, were clearly found, with evidence of deliberate removal.
In December 2010 the object of the dig was to try and find the remaining stone sockets or robbed out pits, to try to establish how many stones had originally stood at this site. There are old accounts from visiting antiquarians to Anglesey, which saw at least four stones standing and estimated that there may have been at least eight or nine stones standing in its original state.
One of the stone stumps that had been partially excavated in 2008, was opened up to reveal more of the stone and try to establish how far down it went. Also to try and find any datable evidence for its construction. What was interesting was, this stone was on a completely different alignment to the other remaining stones. It was made of limestone and seemed to be on an alignment with the mid winter solstice sunset and also with the entrance of the Castell Bryn Gwyn site in the adjacent field. There were some pieces of worked flint found at the site and evidence of burning and charcoal around some of the potential stone locations.
The last interesting point is that the two remaining standing stones you can see today are of completely different shapes. One stone being of a lozenge or diamond shape and the other has a pointed thin form. Even more interesting is that what we seem to have established is that each stone that originally stood seemed to alternate between lozenge and point forms. This I clearly saw in another location which I visited recently, around a very historical and well documented site at West Kennet Avenue leading to the Henge monument at Avebury in Wiltshire. There, the avenue of standing stones are lozenge and pointed and have been deliberately erected to be opposite to each other as the avenue climbs to the main henge monument. It has also been suggested that this maybe a representation of male and female. Further excavation will be carried out at the site in the near future.”

I enjoy reading Rhys Mwyn’s archaeological articles in the Welsh Herald enclosed in the Daily Post each week. This week he mentions the Megalithic Anglesey DVD which we both took part in. This has been unavailable for some time but according to Rhys, can now be had through www.telegtv.com as can also the one on Parys Mountain.





It was my eldest granddaughter Shula’s 21st. birthday two days ago. Here she is with me and her cousins Awen Hâf and Elin Sian.



Sorry, I seemed to have managed somehow to set it all on the left and have no one here to correct it for me! I dare not try it myself incase I delete it all1

NOVEMBER 2010

What a big lapse of time!
Most of August, I spent taking my six year old granddaughter, Awen, on various visits to interesting Anglesey sites. This is one I took of her by Tŷ Newydd Cromlech, Llanfaelog.



To my disappointment, things have really been on a back burner as far as producing the replicas. This is due to the fact that The Friends of The Oriel decided to fold up. All the funding that I’d collected under their title was then passed on to the Oriel itself.

Pat West, the Principal, has put it in an account called Llyn Cerrig Bach and thankfully has ring fenced it. However, Pat is a busy person and finds it very hard to slot time to get the replicas made. She has promised that come the new year she will get their production in motion.
Our diving friends from the States came over in September. They phoned me to say that their time was so limited, that they wouldn’t be diving in Llyn Cerrig Bach this year. They had been called to an important meeting in London with the National Geographical Society.



Alan and I paid our usual visit to the National museum whilst in Cardiff. We were given such a warm and enthusiastic welcome by three of the most prominent staff in the archaeology department, namely Adam Gwilt, Curator - Later Prehistory, Mark Lodwick, Portable Antiquities Finds Co-ordinator and Tony Daly, Archaeology Department Illustrator. We spent a good hour together discussing various queries on aspects I needed guidance on regarding my present involvement with Llyn Cerrig Bach.



Tony Daly then invited Alan and myself to his graphics studio and showed us various techniques he used to produce his illustrations. Alan, being an artist in his leisure time, was enthralled with it all. Before I left, he presented me with a complete set of the drawings he made of Llyn Cerrig Bach artefacts ( A2 sheets ). He also gave me a copy on my memory stick of his depiction of a votive ceremony taking place on the banks of Llyn Cerrig Bach,for me to include in my future Powerpoint presentations. (This has gradually climbed to 105 slides by now. Thankfully, I have a shorter version for schools!)

Another good friend, Ken Brassil, the museum Education Officer then appeared with a group of school children. He is a font of knowledge on the history of Llyn Cerrig Bach and I have been observing him working with various Anglesey schools, as you will note from my previous blog entries. He also appears on the DVD “Megalithic Anglesey” explaining the significance of the find, whilst leaning on a cabinet full of artefacts from the lake. These are on display at the Origins exhibition in the museum.

( Forgive the large text and left aligment. I failed completely to locate any Font or Centre icon this time sorry!)

JULY 2010

Just before our U3A summer recession we went on a visit to Parys mountain, Amlwch. Our guide for the day was Alan Kelly, a good friend of mine since a few years now. It was great meeting up again, although we’ve been keeping in touch frequently by e-mail. Alan gave us an interesting insight into the history of Parys mountain followed by a visit to Amlwch Port Heritage Centre. Everyone enjoyed the humorous anecdotes that Alan introduced frequently to enhance the facts. As you can see from the picture we share the same sense of humour.




Our final visit was up Snowdon by train. The visibility was excellent at the summit and everyone admired the new café, Hafod Eryri. It really has blended well into the surrounding vista. It reminded me very much of the one I’d been to at Cape Point in South Africa during the time I stayed with my cousin Eric. The view is of the famous Crib Goch and with my friend Shirley on the summit.



For the last three weeks there has been an exciting archaeological excavation been happening on Anglesey, led by Dave Hopewell and George Smith from GAT. An earlier geophysical survey made revealed an extensive Roman settlement on Tai Cochion land near the Menai Straits. This would probably have had connection with the Roman Fort of Segontium over by Caernarfon. A team of volunteers, including my son in law Dominic helped each day. Boundary walls and a ditch were excavated Amongst the finds they unearthed were coins, and an accumulation of different parts of pottery, including a dated one from AD 140 – 160. Also various animal bones and part of a Roman broach. A filming crew from S4C came on site to make a documentary which will be shown in the Autumn.



On their final day last Saturday, they held a public open day. Alan and myself took my cousin Ken with us. ( Dr.Ken ) He is a very highly respected local historian and having been an orthopaedic consultant, is able to identify any bones brought up on various sites over the years. It was very pleasing to see such a large attendance of interested people in our history and heritage.

View also Tai Cochion dig blog

JUNE 2010

Last Thursday, I was invited to give my presentation on Llyn Cerrig Bach to the members of the Holyhead Probus. I had a great welcome being the only woman amongst 35 men. Some of them were friends which I had not met since our time in Holyhead Grammer school 60 years ago! So there was a lot of hugging and kissing going on! My only disappointment was that my cousin, Dr.Ken wasn’t able to attend, due to a bout of ill-health. He had been looking forward to introducing me officially before the talk. He had asked me to show first a photo of us both on Rhosneigr beach when we were about two years old!



The Anglesey Walking Festival started on May 29th. and I was Walk 21.I have agreed to do this for Menter Môn for five consecutive years by now.. It was arranged that I met the walkers first by Llyn Cerrig Bach to give them an insight into the history of how my father came to a decision to dredge the lakes and bogs around Llyn Cerrig Bach in 1943, resulting in the incredible find of the Iron age artefacts. The picture has been taken of them admiring the replica gang chain in the boot of my car It is much too heavy to handle, especially for children. This is why I want to have a lighter one produced, along with five other replicas.

We then continued the walk into the RSPB reserve with Ian Simms, the warden. We were all able to observe a great variety of birds through Ian’s strong telescopic lenses. The weather was absolutely glorious.

Managed to click the wrong key again before I'd finished!

It is lovely coming back home to Anglesey although its very cold. However, it has been so sunny that I have spent a lot of time walking my daughter’s dogs around the nearby Llyn Maelog.




The Anglesey Walking Festival starts on May 29th. and I shall be giving a talk on site at Llyn Cerrig Bach (NGR SH / 303765 ) about the Iron Age artefacts found there. Car park grid ref. NGR SH 312 763. Maybe I shall see some of you there?