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Maes Dyfnant Round Cairn is a prehistoric round cairn located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference MG133. The monument sits upon bedrock of Wenlock Rocks, a geological formation dating to the Wenlock period, composed of interbedded sandstone and conglomerate. This solid foundation of mixed sedimentary stone would have provided stable ground for the cairn's construction and remains visible in the surrounding landscape today.
Round cairns of this type typically date to the Bronze Age and served as burial monuments for prominent members of prehistoric communities. The construction of such monuments required considerable labour and organisation, reflecting the social importance of those interred within. The choice of location on Wenlock bedrock suggests the builders selected terrain with naturally exposed stone, which would have facilitated the sourcing of material for the cairn.
The Wenlock rocks underlying the site formed during the Silurian period in shallow marine environments, and their durable sandstone and conglomerate composition ensured the monument's longevity over millennia. Today, Maes Dyfnant Round Cairn remains a significant record of Bronze Age funerary practice and settlement patterns in Wales, preserved within the landscape that shaped its construction.
Maes Dyfnant Round Cairn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference MG133. View the official record →
Maes Dyfnant Round Cairn is a prehistoric round cairn located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference MG133.
Maes Dyfnant Round 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.
Maes Dyfnant Round 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 MG133.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Cae'r-Mynach Round Cairn (2.8 km), Mynydd Dyfnant Stone Alignment (3 km), Tryfel Cairns and Stone Setting (4.5 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Maes Dyfnant Round 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.
Maes Dyfnant Round Cairn stands on Wenlock Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Wenlock. The rock here is sandstone and conglomerate, interbedded.