Scheduled MonumentsWalesCarn Nant-yr-ast round cairn
Prehistoric · Round Cairn

Carn Nant-yr-ast round cairn

Carmarthenshire, Wales
Cadw SAM CM364
Period
Prehistoric
Site type
Round Cairn
Broad class
Religious, Ritual and Funerary
Nation
Wales
The designation
Reference
Cadw SAM CM364
Authority
Cadw
Designated
2005-12-06
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw

Overview

History & significance

Carn Nant-yr-ast round cairn is a prehistoric burial monument located in Wales, constructed from stones gathered from the surrounding landscape. The cairn sits upon bedrock of Llandovery sandstone and conglomerate, characteristic of the Silurian period, which would have provided suitable material for building across the upland terrain. This geological foundation has preserved the monument through millennia of Welsh weather and landscape change.

Round cairns of this type typically date to the Bronze Age, serving as territorial markers and burial places for the dead. Built by stacking stones into a prominent mound, they represent significant communal investment in commemoration and ritual practice. The specific geology of the site—the interbedded sandstone and conglomerate deposits—would have influenced both the construction techniques available to prehistoric builders and the eventual preservation of the monument.

Carn Nant-yr-ast is protected under Cadw's heritage register as monument CM364, recognising its archaeological importance to Welsh prehistory. The cairn remains a visible reminder of Bronze Age burial practices and the long-standing human settlement of upland Wales, standing within a landscape whose underlying geology shaped the possibilities and constraints of ancient monument building.

Carn Nant-yr-ast round cairn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference CM364. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Carn Nant-yr-ast round cairn?

Carn Nant-yr-ast round cairn is a prehistoric burial monument located in Wales, constructed from stones gathered from the surrounding landscape. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference CM364.

What period does Carn Nant-yr-ast round cairn date from?

Carn Nant-yr-ast round 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.

Who is responsible for protecting Carn Nant-yr-ast round cairn?

Carn Nant-yr-ast round 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 CM364.

What other scheduled monuments are near Carn Nant-yr-ast round cairn?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Pen Cerrigdiddos Round Cairns (6 km), Cefn y Bryn Ring Cairn (6.3 km), Burnt Mound on Esgair Ferchon (6.4 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Carn Nant-yr-ast round cairn

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Carn Nant-yr-ast round cairn'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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Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Carn Nant-yr-ast round cairn

Carn Nant-yr-ast round cairn stands on Llandovery Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Llandovery. The rock here is sandstone and conglomerate, interbedded.