Welsh Journals

LOUGHOR (SS 562 979) Excavations scheduled to last for up to two years were begun by the Glamorgan-Gwent Archaeological Trust in May 1982 on the site of the Roman auxiliary fort at Loughor, probably the Leucarum of the Antonine Itinerary. The work has been prompted by the impending construction of the A484 Llanelli Link Road which will destroy large parts of the fort site. Early work to the W. and S. of the parish church has confirmed the high archaeological potential of the site suggested in excavations by Mr J.M. Lewis and Drs R. and L. Ling in 1969-73. On the Upper Station House Site parts of two major buildings have been excavated. Of these, the later building probably dated to c. 110-130/40 A.D., and its plan and associated features suggested that it was probably the praetorium (commander's house). Beneath the probable praetorium there was evidence for what may prove to be part of a cavalry barracks. This is suggested partly by the lay-out of the structure, which resembles a barrack block in plan, although too short to accommodate a full century, and partly by the discovery of horse-trappings. The building was of wattle-and-daub construction and dated from c. 100 A.D. to c. 110 A.D., when its life was terminated by an extensive fire. Among the finds from the debris was a silvered bronze figurine of a rat, a known Roman type. Parts of a well-preserved mortar floor underlay the wattle-and-daub structure, and at least two earlier timber phases pre-date this floor. On the Lower Station House Site part of a bath house, almost certainly that discovered during the construction of the South Wales Railway in 1852, has been identified. A corner of the building is located immediately outside and perhaps partly overlying the south- west defences of the fort. It is therefore unlikely to be a primary feature of the site, yet after it went out of use a new, albeit fairly small, fort ditch was cut, the ditch being shored with timber on either side to prevent collapse. Its date is uncertain, but it is not likely to pre- date the early second century, and it could be considerably later. To the rear of 1 and 3 Dock Street excavation has uncovered a complex sequence of activity which is difficult to interpret. Among the clearer parts of this sequence were a line of massively constructed post holes representing the latest phase of Romano-British activity,