Scheduled MonumentsWalesPencraig y Pistill Round Cairn
Prehistoric · Round Cairn

Pencraig y Pistill Round Cairn

Ceredigion, Wales
Cadw SAM CD250
Period
Prehistoric
Site type
Round Cairn
Broad class
Religious, Ritual and Funerary
Nation
Wales
The designation
Reference
Cadw SAM CD250
Authority
Cadw
Designated
2008-02-05
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw

Overview

History & significance

Pencraig y Pistyll Round Cairn is a prehistoric round cairn located in Wales and protected by Cadw as a scheduled monument under reference CD250. The monument sits upon bedrock of the Llandovery formation, composed of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone deposited during the Llandovery period of the Ordovician era. This solid foundation would have provided a stable base for construction of the cairn structure.

Round cairns represent a major form of burial monument across Britain and Wales during the Bronze Age, typically built as rubble mounds raised over inhumed or cremated remains. The monument's form and location reflect patterns of prehistoric settlement and land use across the upland and marginal terrain where such monuments are frequently encountered. The Llandovery bedrock underlying the site is characteristic of much of the Welsh landscape.

Pencraig y Pistyll remains an important monument of the Bronze Age period, contributing to our understanding of burial practices and territorial organisation in prehistoric Wales. Its preservation under Cadw protection ensures continued opportunities for study and interpretation of this class of monument within its local geological and landscape context.

Pencraig y Pistill Round Cairn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference CD250. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Pencraig y Pistill Round Cairn?

Pencraig y Pistyll Round Cairn is a prehistoric round cairn located in Wales and protected by Cadw as a scheduled monument under reference CD250.

What period does Pencraig y Pistill Round Cairn date from?

Pencraig y Pistill 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.

Who is responsible for protecting Pencraig y Pistill Round Cairn?

Pencraig y Pistill 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 CD250.

What other scheduled monuments are near Pencraig y Pistill Round Cairn?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Llywernog Lead and Silver Mine (5.8 km), Hen Bont, Pont-Erwyd (6.5 km), Round Barrow SW of Pen-Rhiwlas (6.5 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Pencraig y Pistill Round Cairn

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Pencraig y Pistill Round 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.
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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Pencraig y Pistill Round Cairn

Pencraig y Pistill Round Cairn stands on Llandovery Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Llandovery. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.