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Carneddau Round Cairn is a prehistoric round cairn situated in Wales. The monument lies upon bedrock of Ordovician mafic tuff, an ancient extrusive igneous rock formed during the Ordovician period over 440 million years ago. This volcanic foundation provides a stable base typical of upland Welsh terrain.
Round cairns represent some of the earliest monumental construction in Britain, typically built during the Bronze Age as burial or ceremonial monuments. Constructed from stone heaped into a circular mound, such cairns often contained central burial chambers or cists. The specific construction methods and size of Carneddau Round Cairn reflect the capabilities and resources of its prehistoric builders.
The monument is formally protected by Cadw, the Welsh heritage organisation, under reference RD122. This designation ensures the cairn's preservation and scholarly study. The site remains an important archaeological resource for understanding prehistoric settlement patterns, funerary practices and land use in upland Wales. Its survival allows future investigation of Bronze Age monument construction and ritual behaviour in this region.
Carneddau Round Cairn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference RD122. View the official record →
Carneddau Round Cairn is a prehistoric round cairn situated in Wales. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference RD122.
Carneddau 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.
Carneddau 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 RD122.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Builth Castle (3.8 km), Aberedw Hill Deserted Rural Settlement (4.4 km), Aberedw Hill Round Barrows (4.6 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Carneddau Round 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.
Carneddau Round Cairn stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Ordovician, bedrock that formed in the Ordovician. The rock here is mafic tuff.