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Nant Gwyn round cairns is a prehistoric round cairn located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference DE305. The monument consists of substantial stone heaps constructed over bedrock composed of Ordovician felsic tuff, an ancient volcanic rock formed during the Ordovician period over 450 million years ago. This particular geological foundation of unnamed extrusive rocks would have presented considerable challenges to those constructing the cairn, requiring substantial effort to gather and pile stones across difficult terrain.
Round cairns of this type typically served as burial monuments during the Bronze Age, though some may date to the Neolithic period. Their construction involved heaping stones, sometimes arranged in rings or with central chambers, to cover and commemorate the dead. The scale of effort required to build such monuments reflects their significance within contemporary communities.
The Nant Gwyn site's location on Ordovician volcanic rock places it within one of Wales's geologically distinctive regions. The preservation of the monument under official protection recognises its value as evidence of prehistoric settlement patterns and burial practices, contributing to our understanding of Bronze Age societies in the Welsh landscape.
Nant Gwyn round cairns is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference DE305. View the official record →
Nant Gwyn round cairns is a prehistoric round cairn located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference DE305.
Nant Gwyn round cairns 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.
Nant Gwyn round cairns 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 DE305.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Craig Berwyn Round Barrow (4.7 km), Cairns, Settlements & Field Systems of Prehistoric & Medieval date at Pennant above Nant Esgeiriau (5 km), Nant Esgeiriau Cairn (5.3 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Nant Gwyn round cairns'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 Gwyn round cairns stands on Unnamed Extrusive Rocks, Ordovician, bedrock that formed in the Ordovician. The rock here is felsic tuff.