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Tumpthumping

Sunday 18th February 2007

I've passed through Trellech three times. On each occasion, I've been cramming as much into a day as possible, and thus Harold's Stones have been my only port of call. Which is a shame, since the village contains so much more. Well this time I was staying in the area, the weather was foul, so it seemed a good opportunity to explore a little more.

You'd never believe it today, but Trellech was once one of the largest market towns in Wales, sitting on the original trading route between Monmouth and Chepstow. It's decline can largely be attributed to the ravages of the Black Death and Owain Glyndwr.

Trellech is mainly known for Harold's Stones - an alignment of three Neolithic megaliths.

A fourth is also believed to have existed on the edge of the village. This was known as the 'Peckett Stone', and the local wood still bears this name. A quick exploration of the area revealed a couple of suspicious recumbent stones that may well have been upright megaliths at some point, but it's impossible to be certain of their antiquity.

After exploring the woods, we headed back down the village to visit one of Trellech's other famous features - The Tump. A number of theories offer possible explanations for this unusual mound - a plague burial site, a neolithic earthwork and a Norman motte. The latter appears to have gained the most favour, but I personally find it a little implausible. The mound is very small and any castle sitting atop it would have been tiny! Either way, legend has it that bad luck will befall anyone who attempts to dig on The Tump, so I guess the Time Team won't be solving the mystery any time soon!

A short walk to the church took us past a barn with supporting stones of a suspicious nature. Once you start spotting the ruins of megaliths, it's hard to stop seeing them wherever you turn!

The church may seem large for such a small village, but this is in keeping with Trellech's grander history. It's worth taking a nosey inside just to see the curious medieval sundial, complete with its depiction of Harold's Stones.

By the time we'd finished nosing around the church, the weather had taken a serious turn for the worse. As a result, we abandoned plans to visit Trellech's last site of interest - the Virtuous Well. This is an iron-rich spring purportedly endowed with healing properties. Some believe it may have been a Druidic holy site, but that's pure speculation. Hopefully I'll get to visit it one day!