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Capel Curig cairn is a prehistoric round cairn situated in Wales on bedrock of Caradoc Rocks, comprising mudstone, siltstone and sandstone laid down during the Caradocian period. The monument is protected by Cadw, the heritage organisation responsible for Welsh archaeological sites, under reference CN363.
Round cairns of this type were constructed during the Bronze Age as burial monuments, typically by stacking stone collected from the surrounding landscape. The underlying geology would have provided readily available stone material for cairn construction, with the Caradoc bedrock naturally weathering to produce blocks suitable for building.
The site's preservation and official protection reflect its archaeological significance as evidence of prehistoric burial practices and settlement patterns in Wales. Such cairns often contained cremated or inhumed remains, along with grave goods, providing insight into the beliefs, craftsmanship and social organisation of Bronze Age communities in upland Welsh regions.
Capel Curig cairn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference CN363. View the official record →
Capel Curig cairn is a prehistoric round cairn situated in Wales on bedrock of Caradoc Rocks, comprising mudstone, siltstone and sandstone laid down during the Caradocian period. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference CN363.
Capel Curig cairn 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.
Capel Curig cairn 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 CN363.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Bryn-y-Gefeiliau Roman Site (1.5 km), Afon Ystymiau, cairns to N of (2.7 km), Dyffryn Mymbyr cairn circle (4.8 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Capel Curig cairn'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.
Capel Curig cairn stands on Caradoc Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Caradocian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.