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Cryn-y-Brain Round Barrow is a prehistoric burial mound situated in Wales and protected as a scheduled monument under Cadw reference DE270. Round barrows of this type were constructed during the Bronze Age as funerary monuments, typically containing inhumation or cremation burials accompanied by grave goods. The barrow's location above Ashgill bedrock—composed of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone—reflects the geology of its upland setting, where such Bronze Age communities established their burial grounds on available higher ground.
The monument comprises an earthen mound characteristic of Bronze Age funerary practice in Wales. Its preservation as a scheduled ancient monument recognises its archaeological significance as evidence of prehistoric settlement and burial custom. The specific soil conditions created by the underlying Ashgill rocks would have influenced how the burial chamber and mound were constructed and have subsequently weathered over three thousand years.
Today Cryn-y-Brain remains a visible landscape feature, its form substantially intact despite the passage of time. The barrow contributes to understanding Bronze Age society in Wales, demonstrating the investment communities made in monumental burial and the territorial significance of such conspicuous structures across the Welsh uplands. Its continued protection ensures the archaeological record it contains remains available for future investigation.
Cryn-y-Brain Round Barrow is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference DE270. View the official record →
Cryn-y-Brain Round Barrow is a prehistoric burial mound situated in Wales and protected as a scheduled monument under Cadw reference DE270.
Cryn-y-Brain Round Barrow 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.
Cryn-y-Brain Round Barrow 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 DE270.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Valle Crucis Abbey (5.1 km), Castell Dinas Bran (5.7 km), Pen y Gaer Hillfort (6.4 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Cryn-y-Brain Round Barrow'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.
Cryn-y-Brain Round Barrow stands on Ashgill Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Ashgill. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.