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Bancbryn cairn cemetery is a prehistoric round cairn located in Wales and protected by Cadw as a scheduled monument under reference CM333. The site sits on bedrock formed from the South Wales Upper Coal Measures Formation, a Westphalian-age deposit comprising mudstone, siltstone, sandstone, coal, ironstone and ferricrete. This geological foundation would have influenced both the monument's construction and the landscape available to its builders during the prehistoric period.
Round cairns of this type were typically raised over burial deposits and served as substantial territorial markers within Bronze Age and Iron Age communities. Built from stone gathered locally, such monuments often required considerable labour and investment, reflecting their significance in the ritual and social life of their time. The ferricrete and harder sandstone bands within the Coal Measures geology would have provided suitable building stone for Bancbryn's construction.
The cemetery designation indicates that the monument functioned as a burial ground serving a broader community rather than a single interment. Such cairn cemeteries represent important archaeological resources for understanding prehistoric settlement patterns, funerary practices and social organisation in Wales. The site remains a valuable record of early prehistoric occupation and belief systems in its landscape.
Bancbryn cairn cemetery is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference CM333. View the official record →
Bancbryn cairn cemetery is a prehistoric round cairn located in Wales and protected by Cadw as a scheduled monument under reference CM333.
Bancbryn cairn cemetery dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a round cairn. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Bancbryn cairn cemetery 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 CM333.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Burial Chamber Nr Carn Llechart (4.1 km), Carn Llechart Stone Circle (4.1 km), Ring Cairn on Tor Clawdd (4.2 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Bancbryn cairn cemetery's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Bancbryn cairn cemetery stands on South Wales Upper Coal Measures Formation, bedrock that formed in the Westphalian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone, sandstone, coal, ironstone and ferricrete.