Payment for restoration must be made by the villager who recorded himself demolishing a 4,500-year-old work of art

A villager who was caught on camera destroying an allegedly 4,500-year-old piece of art has been ordered to pay for its restoration.

Julian Baker, 52, filmed himself damaging the ancient monument (Image: WALES NEWS SERVICE)

Two sizable sandstones with "cup marks" carved into their upper surfaces, belonging to the Bronze Age, are part of the buried monument at Eglwysilan Mountain near Caerphilly, South Wales. 52-year-old Julian Baker recorded himself digging up the structure and removing the rock art panel from its stone. At Newport Magistrates' Court, Baker, of Abertridwr, admitted intentionally exposing and harming the Bronze Age monument, which is said to have been in place since 2500 BC.

A representative of Welsh Government heritage organization Cadw remarked: “This damage is a serious incident at a rare class of prehistoric monument in Wales. Significant archaeological information has been lost forever, and although some evidence may remain, the significance and value of the part of the monument damaged has been significantly diminished.

We welcome the court's decision in this case…the custodial sentence and fine imposed reflect the seriousness of this offence. Our scheduled monuments and the archaeological structures, deposits and artefacts they contain are very fragile and vulnerable. They are a finite resource that are sensitive to change. Once damaged or destroyed, they and the archaeological data within have been lost forever and cannot be replaced. Heritage crime, particularly reckless damage, is a serious matter which can cause irreparable damage. We would like to thank our partners at Gwent Police for their assistance in this case, and we will continue to work closely with them through their Operation Heritage Cymru and Heritage Watch schemes to investigate and pursue offenders to preserve and protect Wales' historic environment for the benefit of this and future generations."

The Bronze Age monument is believed to date back more than 4,500 years ( Image: WALES NEWS SERVICE)

The rural crime unit of Gwent Police mentioned that "the defendant in this case damaged legally protected pre-historic rock art in Caerphilly, and was given a four month custodial sentence suspended for two years. They were also ordered to pay compensation of £4,400 for restoration. The Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Act protects the archaeological heritage of Wales, England, and Scotland - making damage to and metal detecting on scheduled monuments a criminal offence. A scheduled monument is an important archaeological site or historic building that is protected against unauthorised change."