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Hut Circle Settlement on Mynydd Du is a prehistoric unenclosed hut circle located in Wales. The settlement occupies exposed moorland underlain by Llanvirn Rocks of Whiterock age, a bedrock composed of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone that would have presented a challenging substrate for construction. The site is protected as a scheduled monument by Cadw under reference CN217, reflecting its importance to understanding prehistoric settlement patterns in the Welsh uplands.
Unenclosed hut circles of this type typically date from the Bronze Age through to the Iron Age, representing domestic occupation in areas where the open moorland landscape offered access to grazing and hunting grounds. The absence of surrounding field boundaries or defensive earthworks distinguishes this settlement from later enclosed settlement forms, suggesting a period when communities maintained more fluid relationships with their landscape. The underlying geology of mudstone and siltstone would have influenced both construction methods and the durability of any surviving structural traces.
The monument's survival on Mynydd Du reflects the continuity of upland moorland across centuries, preserving beneath the modern heather and grass the archaeological evidence of ancient domestic life. Such settlements form an essential part of understanding how prehistoric communities exploited Wales's upland terrain, adapting their dwellings and settlement organisation to the constraints and opportunities of moorland environments.
Hut Circle Settlement on Mynydd Du is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference CN217. View the official record →
Hut Circle Settlement on Mynydd Du is a prehistoric unenclosed hut circle located in Wales. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference CN217.
Hut Circle Settlement on Mynydd Du dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a unenclosed hut circle. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Hut Circle Settlement on Mynydd Du 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 CN217.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including The Holyhead Road: the Ogwen Pass (4.1 km), Nant Ffrancon Anti-invasion Defences (4.5 km), Hut Circle Settlement at Nant Bochllwyd (4.9 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Hut Circle Settlement on Mynydd Du'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.
Hut Circle Settlement on Mynydd Du stands on Llanvirn Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Whiterock. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.