Several historical artefacts have been found under the grounds of a castle in Caernarfon, North Wales.
The objects date back from the 16th century and were excavated from the 13th century Porth Mawr Gatehouse, as part of its transformation into modern holiday flats.
The finds were made during the preparatory stage of this process, NorthWales Live reports.
So far, they have found two cannonballs, fragments of 16th-century Cistercian ware pottery and a horseshoe from the Civil War era.
For now, the building is covered in scaffolding to ensure the smooth conservation of the historical place before work begins to turn it into 21st-century properties.
16th-century Cistercian ware pottery fragments
Archaeologists found fragments of 16th-century Cistercian ware pottery at Porth Mawr Gatehouse. This kind of pottery is distinguishable by its metallic-appearing glaze.
They were designated Cistercian because they were excavated at Yorkshire Cistercian abbeys. The pottery predates the dissolution of the monasteries in 1540 and was produced at Abergavenny, Monmouthshire; Tickford, Derbyshire and Wrotham, Kent.
Civil War horseshoe
Caernarfon Castle was held by Royalists during the English Civil War and was besieged three times by Parliamentary forces.
This horseshoe dates back to that period.
The English Civil War lasted from 1642 to 1651 and marked the last time Caernarfon Castle was involved in a war.
Two cannonballs
This is not the first time in recent years cannonballs have been unearthed in Caernarfon. Along with other artefacts such as pistols and musket balls, a large stone cannonball was found in 2015, when work was being done on Caernarfon castle.
Those finds all dated back to the Civil War as well, so it's possible the one found at Porth Mawr is also a remnant of the time the castle was a Royalist stronghold.
Cadw- the Welsh Government's historic environment service - believes the conservation project under way will help to regenerate the town.
A spokesman said: "Cadw are undertaking some enabling works at Porth Mawr, Caernarfon in advance of a larger conservation project to be carried out later this year.
"The works include the removal of hard cement pointing and vegetation, as well as installing new drainage connections and an electrical supply to service the two one-bedroomed holiday apartments planned to be built within the south tower over the next two years."
