Bailey Hill Castle Investigated in Wales

FLINTSHIRE, WALES—BBC News reports that a masonry wall, arrowheads and pottery dated to the twelfth or thirteenth centuries, and seven human burials were discovered at the site of a castle in northeast Wales during restoration work. “Up until we uncovered that masonry construction, the generally perceived idea of what the castle would have looked like is that it would have been constructed from timber, in a classic motte and bailey style,” said archaeologist Ian Grant of the Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust. The presence of masonry walls, Grant explains, suggests that the castle was longer lived and more important to local strategy than previously thought. “It starts to tell you a lot more on the money that’s been invested by the crown or the Welsh princes, whoever is holding it at the time,” he said. Burnt floors at the site could be evidence of a battle or siege, he added. To read about a thirteenth-century catapult stone found at a castle in southeast Wales, go to "Weapons of the Ancient World: Siege Weapons."