Powys Metal Mines Survey

Llandrindod

Geology
Intrusive igneous greenstones with galena, zinc and calcite gangue mineralisation. The main lode strikes north-south.

Workings
There are at least twelve filled shafts of varying size. Some of these shafts were clearly only shallow trials on the lode. The deepest shafts were located at SO06625938. There is one clearly identifiable blocked level with a spoil heap below at SO06715963. Trial shafts in the form of shaft-mounds can be traced as far north as SO06695985. At SO06495955 in the bottom of the valley to the west of the mine there is a wide ditch up to 1.5m deep with boulders at the east end and a water-course in its base which appears to issue from a blocked adit. Although not mentioned in Hall's (1993) notes on the mine, this would appear to be a blocked deep adit for the main shaft above. To the south of the main mining area on the hillside north west of Llwynceubren Farm are numerous dispersed early workings in the form of blocked trial shafts and possible levels or opencuts. Many of these have been wholly or partly destroyed by land improvement for pasture. It is possible that some of the mounds of particularly weathered boulders relate to prehistoric clearance cairns rather than mined waste. The main concentration of these features is in the field centred on SO06575903.

Transport
No evidence.

Power
No evidence.

Processing
In the valley bottom to the west of the mines there is a small processing area at SO06425957 which consists of a heap of mine waste and tailings on top of which is a single-roomed building with basal survival of the dressed block foundations and a southern doorway. Amongst the waste on the west side of the building was a block with a shot hole indicating a post-medieval date. A few yards to the north is a small reservoir with a connecting leat running from the adit cutting. The function of the reservoir is not known unless it was used to fill manual jiggers with water on the processing area. It is assumed that this processing area relates to the eighteenth century mining phase. On the main area of mining there is evidence for manual primary dressing of the mined rock in the form of sorted crushed stone. A few yards to the south of the main shaft are the low earthworks of a square enclosure approx 6x6sq m. which may be related to a former processing area.

Other features
No evidence.

Comments
The potential for very early mining at this site should not be overlooked. Roman activity is evidenced only half a mile to the west by Roman practice camps on Llandrindod Common and the substantial fort at Castell Collen is approximately a mile and a half to the west.