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Cistfaen barrows is a prehistoric round barrow located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference RD210. The monument sits upon bedrock formed from Llandovery Rocks, an undifferentiated sequence of sandstone and conglomerate deposits laid down during the Llandovery period. This geology would have shaped the character of the site, with naturally occurring stone readily available to the communities who built and used the barrow.
Round barrows of this type were constructed during the Bronze Age, serving as burial monuments for high-status individuals or family groups. The mound form created a prominent landmark in the landscape, visible from considerable distance and marking the significance of those interred beneath. The survival of Cistfaen barrows into the modern period demonstrates the durability of its construction, though as with many such monuments, its original dimensions and detail have been altered by millennia of weathering and land use.
The barrow's protection by Cadw reflects its importance as an archaeological monument contributing to our understanding of prehistoric Wales. The bedrock geology at the site, with its ready supply of stone suitable for construction and cairning, would have influenced the monument's form and the practical decisions made by those who built it, connecting the physical landscape directly to human activity in the Bronze Age.
Cistfaen barrows is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference RD210. View the official record →
Cistfaen barrows is a prehistoric round barrow located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference RD210.
Cistfaen barrows dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a round barrow. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Cistfaen barrows 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 RD210.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Cistfaen cairns (0.2 km), Maen Hir cairn cemetery (1.1 km), Carn y Groes cairn (1.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Cistfaen barrows'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.
Cistfaen barrows stands on Llandovery Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Llandovery. The rock here is sandstone and conglomerate, interbedded.