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Cairn Cemetery on Esgair Gerwyn is a prehistoric cairn cemetery situated in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference CD135. The site occupies ground developed over Llandovery rocks, a bedrock of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone formed during the Llandovery period. This underlying geology provided the stone material from which the cairns were constructed, making the cemetery landscape's resources integral to its creation and long-term survival.
Cairn cemeteries represent a significant form of burial monument from prehistoric Wales, where stone-built mounds marked the graves of the dead and served as enduring territorial markers across the upland landscape. The Esgair Gerwyn cemetery reflects communal burial practices and social organisation among prehistoric communities, with its multiple cairns suggesting use across successive generations.
Today the monument remains an important archaeological record of prehistoric Welsh settlement patterns and funerary practices. Its designation as a protected site recognises both its archaeological significance and its value as a physical witness to ancient land use. The cairns continue to punctuate the Esgair Gerwyn landscape, their forms shaped by the local stone that has also preserved them across millennia.
Cairn Cemetery on Esgair Gerwyn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference CD135. View the official record →
Cairn Cemetery on Esgair Gerwyn is a prehistoric cairn cemetery situated in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference CD135.
Cairn Cemetery on Esgair Gerwyn dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a cairn cemetery. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Cairn Cemetery on Esgair Gerwyn 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 CD135.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Blaen Nant-y-Rhiw Round Cairn (5.1 km), Esgair Irfon round cairn (5.2 km), Carn Saith-Wraig Round Cairns (5.3 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Cairn Cemetery on Esgair Gerwyn'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.
Cairn Cemetery on Esgair Gerwyn stands on Llandovery Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Llandovery. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.