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media captionHadrian s Wall and Stonehenge are in better shape, says Offa s Dyke Association
The United Kingdom s longest ancient monument has been damaged by centuries of gradual benign neglect , says an association fighting to preserve it.
A fund has started to help preserve the 8th Century Offa s Dyke earthwork.
Offa s Dyke has a lot of catching up to do compared with other monuments like Hadrian s Wall and Stonehenge, according to its association chairman.
Dave McGlade said the 177 mile (285 km) monument on the Wales-England border is a sensitive archaeological landscape. It is also a scheduled monument, protected by statute law, and deserves to be treated with the utmost respect, added the Offa s Dyke Association chairman.
VANDALISM to a centuries old, historic piece of land bordering Wales and England has prompted conservation groups and government bodies to join forces in an attempt to secure its fragile existence. Offa’s Dyke – an earthwork monument – was built in the late 8th century by the Anglo-Saxon King of Mercia, Offa. Stretching from Flintshire to Gloucestershire, it roughly follows the border between Wales and England and, today, about 80 miles of the monument survive in varying states of preservation and condition. The Offa’s Dyke Path itself runs for 177 miles between Prestatyn and Chepstow and for long sections it shadows the monument, notably in Powys, Shropshire and the Wye Valley in Gloucestershire and Monmouthshire.
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