© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw
Clap yr Arian is a prehistoric round cairn situated in Wales and protected as an ancient monument by Cadw. The monument stands upon bedrock of Llandovery rocks, a formation of undifferentiated mudstone, siltstone and sandstone laid down during the Llandovery period. This geology, characteristic of South Wales valleys, provides the stone from which such cairns were commonly constructed during the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods.
Round cairns of this type typically served as burial monuments, with the mound built up from gathered stone to cover one or more interments. The construction method—assembling loose stone into a substantial earthwork—suited the readily available local geology. The Llandovery bedrock would have offered accessible material for the builders, who selected and carried stones to create the cairn's distinctive form.
The monument's Welsh name, Clap yr Arian, reflects the long cultural continuity of the landscape. Recorded under Cadw's reference RD212, Clap yr Arian remains an important archaeological survival, contributing to understanding of prehistoric settlement and burial practices across Wales and the wider prehistoric Atlantic zone.
Clap yr Arian cairn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference RD212. View the official record →
Clap yr Arian is a prehistoric round cairn situated in Wales and protected as an ancient monument by Cadw. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference RD212.
Clap yr Arian 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.
Clap yr Arian 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 RD212.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Cairns and Standing Stones on Carnau Cefn-y-Ffordd (9.6 km), Saith-Maen Standing Stones (9.7 km), Hafotau Settlement on Bryn Melys (9.9 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Clap yr Arian 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.
Clap yr Arian cairn stands on Llandovery Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Llandovery. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.