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Tafarn-y-bwlch Deserted Rural Settlement is a post-medieval rectangular hut located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference PE490. The structure represents a common building type found across rural Wales during the early modern period, when such dwellings served as domestic and working spaces for the countryside inhabitants. The hut's rectangular plan is typical of modest rural construction from this era, reflecting the practical building methods and spatial organisation of post-medieval settlement.
The site sits upon Llanvirn Rocks of undifferentiated composition, bedrock formed during the Whiterock period and comprising mudstone, siltstone and sandstone. This geological foundation would have influenced both the construction techniques employed and the agricultural potential of the surrounding land, as these sedimentary rocks characterise much of Wales's upland terrain. The local stone would have been readily available for building walls and foundations.
The monument's abandonment and subsequent survival as a deserted settlement is representative of broader patterns of rural depopulation and settlement reorganisation that affected Welsh communities from the post-medieval period onwards. Such sites provide archaeological evidence of domestic life, building practices and land use in areas where systematic modern development has not obscured earlier settlement patterns.
Tafarn-y-bwlch Deserted Rural Settlement is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference PE490. View the official record →
Tafarn-y-bwlch Deserted Rural Settlement is a post-medieval rectangular hut located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference PE490.
Tafarn-y-bwlch Deserted Rural Settlement dates from the post medieval/modern period, and is classified as a rectangular hut. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Tafarn-y-bwlch Deserted Rural Settlement 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 PE490.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Standing Stone 300m WNW of Cilmoor (6.9 km), Standing Stone S of Prysg Farm (7 km), St Teilo's Church & Churchyard (7.2 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Tafarn-y-bwlch Deserted Rural Settlement'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.
Tafarn-y-bwlch Deserted Rural Settlement stands on Llanvirn Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Whiterock. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.