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Plas-Yw Round Barrows is a prehistoric round barrow located in Wales, protected by Cadw under reference FL169. Round barrows are among the most distinctive monuments of Bronze Age Britain, typically constructed as burial mounds over the remains of the deceased, often accompanied by grave goods reflecting the status and beliefs of their community. These earthworks served not only as sepulchres but as permanent landmarks in the landscape, many remaining visible for over three thousand years.
The monument sits upon Ludlow Rocks, undifferentiated mudstone, siltstone and sandstone formations of Ludlow age. This underlying geology of fine-grained sedimentary rock would have presented particular challenges for barrow construction, as the sodden nature of such soils in upland Welsh terrain meant that the mound materials required careful selection and placement to achieve stability. The choice of this location reflects the Bronze Age practice of situating burial monuments at significant points in the landscape, often on elevated ground where they would command long views across the surrounding country.
Like many round barrows across Wales, Plas-Yw represents an important survival of prehistoric funerary practice and Bronze Age social organisation. Such monuments offer insights into the ritual, burial customs and territorial claims of communities during a formative period of British prehistory. The barrow's continued protection ensures that the archaeological record it contains remains available for future investigation and interpretation.
Plas-Yw Round Barrows is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference FL169. View the official record →
Plas-Yw Round Barrows is a prehistoric round barrow located in Wales, protected by Cadw under reference FL169.
Plas-Yw Round Barrows dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a round barrow. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Plas-Yw Round Barrows 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 FL169.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Ministry of Supply Valley Site (4.9 km), Moel-y-Gaer Camp (5.5 km), Coed Clwyd Cairns (5.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Plas-Yw Round Barrows'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.
Plas-Yw Round Barrows stands on Ludlow Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Ludlow. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.