Scheduled MonumentsWalesArthur's Stone, Cefn Bryn
Prehistoric · Chambered Tomb

Arthur's Stone, Cefn Bryn

Wales
Cadw SAM GM003
Period
Prehistoric
Site type
Chambered Tomb
Broad class
Religious, Ritual and Funerary
Nation
Wales
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw

Overview

History & significance

Arthur's Stone is a prehistoric chambered tomb situated on Cefn Bryn in Wales. The monument consists of a substantial stone burial chamber constructed from large orthostatic slabs, typical of Neolithic communal tombs built across Britain and Ireland during the fourth millennium BC. The capstone, a massive naturally fractured slab, crowns the chamber and has become the defining feature of the site. The monument is protected by Cadw under reference GM003.

The tomb was constructed upon bedrock composed of Dinantian rocks, a formation of Mississippian age dominated by limestone with subordinate sandstone and argillaceous strata. This geology shaped both the choice of location and the building materials available to the tomb's constructors. The limestone geology of the upland landscape would have provided suitable stone for the orthostatic chamber walls, whilst the elevated position of Cefn Bryn afforded commanding views across the surrounding terrain.

Arthur's Stone represents a significant investment in labour and communal organisation, reflecting the social and ritual importance of the dead in Neolithic Welsh society. The monument continues to dominate the landscape as it has for over five thousand years, standing as testimony to the permanence and status its builders sought to establish through monumental stone construction.

Arthur's Stone, Cefn Bryn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference GM003. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Arthur's Stone, Cefn Bryn?

Arthur's Stone is a prehistoric chambered tomb situated on Cefn Bryn in Wales. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference GM003.

What period does Arthur's Stone, Cefn Bryn date from?

Arthur's Stone, Cefn Bryn dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a chambered tomb. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.

Who is responsible for protecting Arthur's Stone, Cefn Bryn?

Arthur's Stone, Cefn Bryn is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Cadw — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Wales. The official designation reference is GM003.

What other scheduled monuments are near Arthur's Stone, Cefn Bryn?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Limestone Quarry and Kiln at Oxwich (4.2 km), Tower NE of Oxwich Castle (4.2 km), Castell Oxwich (4.3 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Arthur's Stone, Cefn Bryn

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Arthur's Stone, Cefn Bryn's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Arthur's Stone, Cefn Bryn

Arthur's Stone, Cefn Bryn stands on Dinantian Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Mississippian. The rock here is limestone with subordinate sandstone and argillaceous rocks.