Description

The monument consists of the remains of a furnace dated to the 17th century. The site consists of a circular furnace and hearth, a blowing house and a casting floor all located on a level platform measuring 10m by 12m that is supported by substantial retaining walls up to 3m high. A leat and a wheel pit are located on the E side of the site, which would have powered the bellows. The furnace is built into the hillside and would have been charged from the back, or NW side. The furnace building is roughly square in plan, measuring 7.5m by 7.75m, and is 4m high, although could originally have been up to 7m high. The hearth and bosh originally formed a continuous circular structure with a maximum diameter of 2.3m, although much of the S side is now missing. Above the bosh the inwall survives to a height of 1.3m. The interior of the furnace is black and vitrified. The site was partially excavated in 1964 which identified the tuyere about 0.5m above the base of the hearth, it comprised an arch into which the noses of the bellows would have been inserted. The history of the site is uncertain but was in existence by 1649 and may have gone out of use in the 1650s. The site is likely to have belonged to the Catchmay bfamily, who owned Catchmay's Court located 250m S of the furnace.

The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of early industrial practices. It retains significant archaeological potential, with a strong probability of the presence of associated archaeological features and deposits. The structure itself may be expected to contain archaeological information concerning chronology and building techniques. An industrial monument may be part of a larger cluster of monuments and their importance can further enhanced by their group value.

The scheduled area comprises the remains described and areas around them within which related evidence may be expected to survive.

Source: Cadw