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Rhiwiau round barrow cemetery is a prehistoric round barrow located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference DE100. The site sits upon bedrock composed of Wenlock Rocks, geological formations dating to the Wenlock period that consist of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone. These sedimentary deposits provide a stable foundation across the cemetery, though their relatively soft composition would have presented particular conditions for both burial and preservation of the monuments.
Round barrow cemeteries of this type typically date to the Bronze Age and represent communal burial practices, with individual mounds constructed over inhumed or cremated remains. The Rhiwiau site exemplifies the clustering of these monuments, suggesting repeated use of a single location for burial across generations. The local geology of siltstones and sandstones would have made earthwork construction feasible, allowing communities to raise substantial mounds from available soil and stone.
The barrow cemetery demonstrates the enduring importance of this Welsh location as a place for commemorating the dead through the Bronze Age period. Cadw's protection of the monument ensures the preservation of these structures for future study and public access, maintaining an important record of prehistoric funerary practice and settlement patterns in Wales.
Rhiwiau round barrow cemetery is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference DE100. View the official record →
Rhiwiau round barrow cemetery is a prehistoric round barrow located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference DE100.
Rhiwiau round barrow cemetery 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.
Rhiwiau round barrow cemetery 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 DE100.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Blaen y Cwm Round Barrow (0.6 km), Gorsedd Bran Round Barrows (2.8 km), Round Cairn 648m NE of Tan-y-Foel (2.9 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Rhiwiau round barrow cemetery'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.
Rhiwiau round barrow cemetery stands on Wenlock Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Wenlock. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.