© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw
Remains of Lock and Dry Dock at Pantyffynnon is a post-medieval and modern industrial monument protecting the structural evidence of water management infrastructure. Located in Wales and designated under Cadw protection (reference GM397), the site preserves the physical remains of a lock and associated dry dock, features essential to canal or waterway operations. These structures enabled the controlled passage of vessels and provided facilities for repair and maintenance work on boats and barges that would have served local industries.
The monument sits upon bedrock belonging to the South Wales Middle Coal Measures Formation, a sequence of Moscovian-aged sedimentary and coal-bearing strata comprising mudstone, siltstone, sandstone, coal seams, ironstone and ferricrete. This geology reflects the site's situation within the productive coalfield landscape of south Wales, an environment that historically supported extensive mining, ironworking and water-dependent industrial activities. The dry dock and lock would have been engineered to withstand the heavy traffic and loading demands of such industries.
The survival of structural remains at Pantyffynnon contributes to the archaeological record of post-medieval transport and industrial development in Wales. As a designated monument, the site serves as physical evidence of the investment in infrastructure that facilitated resource extraction and manufacturing during the period of Wales's industrial expansion.
Remains of Lock and Dry Dock at Pantyffynnon is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference GM397. View the official record →
Remains of Lock and Dry Dock at Pantyffynnon is a post-medieval and modern industrial monument protecting the structural evidence of water management infrastructure. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference GM397.
Remains of Lock and Dry Dock at Pantyffynnon dates from the post medieval/modern period, and is classified as a lock. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Remains of Lock and Dry Dock at Pantyffynnon is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Cadw — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Wales. The official designation reference is GM397.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Neath Abbey Ironworks Dam (8.8 km), Blaen-Cwmbach Earthwork (9.3 km), Neath Castle (9.6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Remains of Lock and Dry Dock at Pantyffynnon's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Remains of Lock and Dry Dock at Pantyffynnon stands on Pennine Middle Coal Measures Formation And South Wales Middle Coal Measures Formation (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Moscovian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone, sandstone, coal, ironstone and ferricrete.