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Nant Geifaes Cairn is a prehistoric ring cairn located in Wales and protected as a scheduled monument by Cadw under reference CD232. Ring cairns represent a distinctive form of ceremonial or funerary monument built during the Bronze Age, typically consisting of a circular bank or ring of stones surrounding a central space. These monuments served important ritual functions within prehistoric communities and are found across Britain and Ireland, often situated in upland or marginal landscapes.
The cairn sits upon bedrock formed from Llandovery Rocks, composed of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone. This underlying geology of fine-grained sedimentary deposits is characteristic of the Llandovery period of the Ordovician era. The choice of location on these soft sedimentary rocks, rather than on harder stone formations, would have influenced the monument's construction and the sourcing of materials used to build the cairn's stone elements.
As a scheduled monument, Nant Geifaes Cairn remains under statutory protection. Ring cairns of this type provide valuable evidence of Bronze Age ritual practices, settlement patterns and land use in Welsh upland areas. The monument's survival in the modern landscape contributes to our understanding of prehistoric monumental construction and the sacred topography of ancient communities in Wales.
Nant Geifaes Cairn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference CD232. View the official record →
Nant Geifaes Cairn is a prehistoric ring cairn located in Wales and protected as a scheduled monument by Cadw under reference CD232.
Nant Geifaes 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.
Nant Geifaes 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 CD232.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Castell Bwa-drain Camp (4.3 km), Cairn Circle 200m NNW of Dolgamfa (4.4 km), Banc Erw Barfe Deserted Rural Settlement (5.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Nant Geifaes 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.
Nant Geifaes Cairn stands on Llandovery Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Llandovery. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.