Scheduled MonumentsWalesHafotty Wen Ring Cairn
Prehistoric · Ring Cairn

Hafotty Wen Ring Cairn

Denbighshire, Wales
Cadw SAM DE283
Period
Prehistoric
Site type
Ring Cairn
Broad class
Religious, Ritual and Funerary
Nation
Wales
The designation
Reference
Cadw SAM DE283
Authority
Cadw
Designated
2000-08-24
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw

Overview

History & significance

Hafotty Wen Ring Cairn is a prehistoric ring cairn located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference DE283. The monument sits on bedrock of Wenlock age sandstone and conglomerate, interbedded deposits that form part of the undifferentiated Wenlock Rocks geological sequence. This Silurian-period foundation provided both the raw stone for the cairn's construction and a naturally elevated site commanding views across the surrounding terrain.

Ring cairns are Bronze Age funerary monuments comprising a circular or subcircular bank of stones with an open central space, often marking burial sites or ceremonial grounds. At Hafotty Wen, the combination of exposed Wenlock bedrock and readily available stone fragments would have made this a practical location for such construction, whilst the geological prominence of the sandstone and conglomerate deposits may have held cultural significance for the communities that built the monument.

The site preserves evidence of prehistoric land use and funerary practice in the upland regions of Wales. The protection afforded by Cadw recognises its archaeological importance as a Bronze Age monument and its value in understanding settlement patterns and ritual activity across the Welsh landscape during prehistory.

Hafotty Wen Ring Cairn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference DE283. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Hafotty Wen Ring Cairn?

Hafotty Wen Ring Cairn is a prehistoric ring cairn located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference DE283.

What period does Hafotty Wen Ring Cairn date from?

Hafotty Wen Ring Cairn dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a ring cairn. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.

Who is responsible for protecting Hafotty Wen Ring Cairn?

Hafotty Wen Ring 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 DE283.

What other scheduled monuments are near Hafotty Wen Ring Cairn?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Ffridd Brynhelen Enclosures & Fields (1.7 km), Cae Ddunod Camp (1.9 km), Tyddyn Tudur Enclosure (4.1 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Hafotty Wen Ring Cairn

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Hafotty Wen Ring 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.
First month just £4.99, then £9.99 a month. Unlimited locations, cancel anytime.

Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

Start your Hafotty Wen Ring Cairn report
Or see a real report first
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Hafotty Wen Ring Cairn

Hafotty Wen Ring Cairn stands on Wenlock Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Wenlock. The rock here is sandstone and conglomerate, interbedded.