Scheduled MonumentsWalesBurial Chamber near Cross Hands
Prehistoric · Chambered Tomb

Burial Chamber near Cross Hands

Carmarthenshire, Wales
Cadw SAM CM048
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

Burial Chamber near Cross Hands is a prehistoric chambered tomb located in Wales. It belongs to the tradition of megalithic burial architecture that flourished across western Britain during the Neolithic and Early Bronze Age periods. The monument is protected by Cadw, the Welsh heritage service, under reference CM048.

The site stands on bedrock composed of Llanvirn Rocks, undifferentiated strata of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone formed during the Whiterock period of the Ordovician. This geology shaped both the construction of the monument and its setting, providing materials that would have been available locally to the Neolithic communities who built it.

Chambered tombs such as this functioned as communal burial places, serving multiple generations of a kinship group. The monument represents an investment in permanent architecture that reinforced territorial claims and expressed beliefs about death and the afterlife. Today, the remains at Cross Hands endure as evidence of sophisticated social organisation and ritual practice in prehistoric Wales.

Burial Chamber near Cross Hands is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference CM048. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Burial Chamber near Cross Hands?

Burial Chamber near Cross Hands is a prehistoric chambered tomb located in Wales. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference CM048.

What period does Burial Chamber near Cross Hands date from?

Burial Chamber near Cross Hands 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 Burial Chamber near Cross Hands?

Burial Chamber near Cross Hands 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 CM048.

What other scheduled monuments are near Burial Chamber near Cross Hands?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Whitland Abbey (4.9 km), Roman Road 250m NE of Pwll-y-Hwyaid (5.7 km), Roman Road 300m East of Bryn Farm (6.1 km).

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Everything a full report reveals about Burial Chamber near Cross Hands

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Burial Chamber near Cross Hands'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 Burial Chamber near Cross Hands

Burial Chamber near Cross Hands stands on Llanvirn Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Whiterock. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.