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Carn Nant-y-ffald cairn is a prehistoric round cairn situated in Wales. The monument lies upon Llandovery Rocks, an undifferentiated sequence of Silurian sandstone and conglomerate formed during the Llandovery period. This bedrock geology would have been familiar to the cairn's builders, who selected this location on the landscape approximately four or five thousand years ago during the Neolithic or Early Bronze Age.
Round cairns of this type typically served as burial monuments for individuals or small family groups, constructed by heaping stones gathered from the immediate vicinity. The builders exploited the stony ground to accumulate material, creating a prominent marker visible across the surrounding terrain. The interbedded nature of the local sandstone and conglomerate bedrock would have provided natural stone of varying sizes suitable for the cairn's construction.
The monument is now protected by Cadw, the Welsh historic monuments service, under reference RD207. This designation recognises its significance as evidence of prehistoric settlement and ritual practice in Wales. The cairn survives as a tangible connection to the Bronze Age peoples who inhabited these upland areas, their monumental legacy still discernible on the modern landscape.
Carn Nant-y-ffald cairn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference RD207. View the official record →
Carn Nant-y-ffald cairn is a prehistoric round cairn situated in Wales. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference RD207.
Carn Nant-y-ffald 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.
Carn Nant-y-ffald 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 RD207.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Nant y Llyn cist (5.9 km), Nant y Llyn Stone Row (5.9 km), Nant Cletwr barrow (5.9 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Carn Nant-y-ffald 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.
Carn Nant-y-ffald cairn stands on Llandovery Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Llandovery. The rock here is sandstone and conglomerate, interbedded.