Llech Ronw, or the Slate of Gronw, is a holed stone located along Afon Bryn Saeth (a tributary of Afon Cynfael) in Blaenau Ffestiniog, Wales

Blaenau Ffestiniog

Blaenau Ffestiniog is a town in Gwynedd, north-west Wales. It has a population of 5,000, including Llan Ffestiniog, which makes it the third largest town in Gwynedd, behind Caernarfon & Porthmadog. Although the population reached 12,000 at the peak of the slate industry, the population fell due to...

. The stone is described as being roughly forty inches by thirty inches with a hole of about an inch in diameter going through it.

History

Llech Ronw was discovered by Frank Ward in 1934 on the bank of Afon Cynfal. It was believed to have washed downstream from Ceunant Coch. A few years ago, Llech Ronw was rediscovered along Afon Bryn Saeth. Today, Llech Ronw stands on a farmstead known as Bryn Saeth, or the Hill of the Arrow.

Role in mythology

In the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi

Mabinogion

The Mabinogion is the title given to a collection of eleven prose stories collated from medieval Welsh manuscripts. The tales draw on pre-Christian Celtic mythology, international folktale motifs, and early medieval historical traditions...

 (the story of Math ap Mathonwy

Math fab Mathonwy (Branch)

; "Math, the son of Mathonwy" is a legendary tale from medieval Welsh literature and the final of the four branches of the Mabinogi. It tells of a vicious war between the north and the south, of the birth of Lleu Llaw Gyffes and Dylan ail Don, of the tyngedau of Arianrhod, and of the creation of...

), Lleu Llaw Gyffes

Lleu Llaw Gyffes

Lleu Llaw Gyffes is a hero of Welsh mythology. He appears most prominently in the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi, the tale of Math fab Mathonwy, which tells the tale of his birth, his marriage, his death, his resurrection and his accession to the throne of Gwynedd...

 is betrayed by his wife, Blodeudd

Blodeuwedd

Blodeuwedd or Blodeuedd, , is the wife of Lleu Llaw Gyffes in Welsh mythology, made from the flowers of broom, meadowsweet and the oak by the magicians Math and Gwydion, and is a central figure in the fourth branch of the Mabinogi.-Role in Welsh tradition:The...

, when she elopes with Gronw Pebyr. Blodeuedd and Gronw plot to kill Lleu, and while Lleu is on the bank of Afon Cynfael, Gronw hurls a spear at him. Lleu is deeply wounded and flees in the shape of an eagle.
At the end of the tale, Lleu seeks recompense from Gronw for the attempted murder. Thus Lleu and Gronw end up once again on opposite banks of Afon Cynfal, only this time Lleu is preparing to throw a spear at Gronw. However, before Lleu can do away with his opponent, Gronw asks for a stipulation.

Then Gronw Pebyr said to Lleu, ‘Lord, since I did what I did to you through the maliciousness of a woman, I beg of you for God’s sake let me put the stone I see there on the bank between me and the blow.’

‘God knows,’ said Lleu, ‘I won’t refuse you that.’

Yet the stone does not stop Lleu’s spear, which goes right through it, killing Gronw.

And Gronw Pebyr died, and the stone is there still on the bank of the Cynfael in Ardudwy

Ardudwy

Ardudwy is an area of Gwynedd in north-west Wales, lying between Tremadog Bay and the Rhinogydd. Administratively, under the old Kingdom of Gwynedd, it was first a division of the sub kingdom of Dunoding and later a cantref in its own right...

, with the hole through it. Because of that it is called Gronw’s Stone.

Llech Ronw, given its appearance and location, is thought to be the stone here described as Gronw’s Stone.

In lieu of the mythological nature of Llech Ronw, it is interesting to note the name of the farmstead where it now stands, Bryn Saeth (Hill of the Arrow), as well as the name of the nearby farmstead, Llech Goronwy (Goronwy’s Slate). In addition, there is another hill in the area called, Bryn Cyfergyd, which may be the Bryn Cygergyr (Hill of Battle) of the Mabinogi and thus the hill from which Gronw threw his spear while attempting to kill Lleu.