Dolaucothi-Pumsaint: Survey and Excavation at a Roman gold-mining complex 1987-1999

Dolaucothi, near the modern village of Pumsaint in south-west Wales, is the only site in Britain where the Romans are known certainly to have mined for gold. The main workings, which are thought to span various phases of exploitation from the pre-Roman through to the present, can be traced over a distance of more than a kilometre. This volume reports on a series of investigations carried out at this important complex over a period of 12 years. These investigations have helped to clarify several aspects of the mine's development, the technologies involved, and the impact of the mines on the wider cultural and environmental landscape during the later 1st and 2nd centuries, when the Romans had a major presence in the Dolaucothi area. The volume includes reports on: the new excavations and survey of the Roman fort and vicus at the village of Pumsaint; the excavation and survey of various leat systems which supplied water to the mines; excavations in the vicinity of a possible mill complex, which revealed new evidence about ore crushing and processing; the geophysical survey of the east side of the fort at Pumsaint, which revealed an extensive area of civilian settlement; excavations in the vicinity of a possible bath-house; geophysical survey and excavation in the vicinity of the Roman road from Llandovery to Pumsaint, which revealed further evidence of civilian settlement; and an overview of the recent detailed surface survey of the mine workings. The authors also provide a history of previous excavations and research at the site.