Crymych dig adds evidence for Roman fort, archaeologist says

Archaeological work near Crymych in Pembrokeshire has uncovered Roman pottery, tiles, an iron writing stylus and coins dating from the late fourth century, according to Wolfson College, Oxford. The college says the findings add evidence for a previously unknown Roman fort identified by its Supernumerary Fellow, Dr Mark Merrony. It cautions that further research is needed to establish any connection with Magnus Maximus, known in Welsh as Macsen Wledig.

What the excavation found

In his own account published by The Conversation on 15 October, Merrony describes five trenches across suspected buildings, a perimeter-road area and a track. He reports clay floor structures, pottery and tile fragments, a rampart base and a road surface with rut marks. He interprets the combined findings as evidence of a timber fort. The track revealed by the fifth trench has yet to be dated, he says. Those distinctions matter: identifying structures and dating occupation are separate parts of the investigation.

Where the legend fits

Merrony first identified the site in 2024. It lies near Frenni Fawr, the Pembrokeshire hill associated with Magnus Maximus in the medieval Welsh tales collected in the Mabinogion. The location and late Roman coins make the connection worth investigating, but neither the college’s announcement nor Merrony’s account establishes that the emperor visited this site. A coin from a particular period does not identify the person who occupied a fort. The immediate finding concerns Roman activity in west Wales. The possible relationship between that archaeology and the story of Macsen Wledig remains a research question.