Haunted Welsh castle goes under the hammer for a snip

0 Comments | AFP, March, 2006

LONDON (AFP) — A haunted Welsh castle dating from the Elizabethan age has been put up for auction at an opening price of 5,000 pounds sterling (7,300 euros, 8,800 dollars), local authorities said.

The ivy-covered ruin of Llantwit Major Castle, built in 1596 some 30 kilometres (20 miles) from Cardiff in south Wales, will go under the hammer on April 3.

The ruin is reputed to be haunted by a mysterious Dutchman, historian Elwyn Gibbs told the newspaper the Western Mail.

The castle had belonged to one family for a century until 1694, was abandoned at the beginning of the 18th century and thereafter fell into ruin, a spokesman for the Welsh administration explained.

The interior was demolished in 1834 and the building is roofless.

The castle is a...