Maen Madoc
The Maen Madoc or Maen Madog Stone is a menhir ( Welsh Maen hir - English standing stone ), which stands next to the Roman road Sarn Helen , which leads over the Brecon Beacons . It stands about two kilometers north of Ystradfocket near Aberdare and is about 2.7 meters high. The base of the stone is surrounded by deeply embedded stones. Although the stone is named after a Madoc, nothing is known about it. It is believed to mark a Christian funeral.
The stone bears the Latin inscription on one side: DERVACI FILIVS IVSTI IC IACIT - “Dervacus, son of Justus, lies here”. The inscription is aligned vertically in two rows on the narrow stone. This likely caused the letters to be aligned inconsistently. D and S appear in mirror writing, A and T are upside down, F and I are connected ( ligature ), I at the end of a word is shown horizontally, probably also to show the separation of the words. The letters I and L and the upside down T are difficult to distinguish from each other, but the interpretation is consistent among epigraphers .
It is possible that the Maen Madoc itself has a much older origin and may have been erected in the Bronze Age .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Ystradfelte . Maen Madoc, Celtic Inscribed Stones from University College London pages, accessed December 28, 2017
Web links
Coordinates: 51 ° 49 ′ 47.9 " N , 3 ° 34 ′ 16.4" W.