© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw
Three Round Cairns on y Gamriw is a Bronze Age round cairn situated on the upland terrain of Wales. The monument consists of three separate earthen mounds constructed from stone and soil, typical of burial monuments erected during the Bronze Age. The site sits upon Ashgill Rocks, a bedrock of mudstone, siltstone and sandstone formed during the Ashgill period of the Ordovician era. This underlying geology shaped both the availability of stone for construction and the drainage characteristics of the burial platform.
Round cairns of this type served as funerary monuments, often containing central burial chambers or cremation deposits. The presence of three cairns in close proximity suggests repeated use of the location for burial over generations, a common practice in Bronze Age communities. The construction would have been labour-intensive, requiring the gathering and stacking of stones from the surrounding landscape.
The site is protected and managed by Cadw, the Welsh heritage monument authority, under reference BR212. This designation ensures the long-term preservation of the cairns and restricts damaging activities. The upland location, typical of Bronze Age cairn placement, would have afforded visibility across the surrounding terrain and remains an important archaeological resource for understanding Bronze Age burial practices and settlement patterns in Wales.
Three Round Cairns on y Gamriw is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference BR212. View the official record →
Three Round Cairns on y Gamriw is a Bronze Age round cairn situated on the upland terrain of Wales. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference BR212.
Three Round Cairns on y Gamriw dates from the bronze age period, and is classified as a round cairn. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.
Three Round Cairns on y Gamriw 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 BR212.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Standing Stone NE of Capel Rhos (5.4 km), Ringwork near Coed Ty-Mawr (5.5 km), Darren round cairn (5.7 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Three Round Cairns on y Gamriw'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.
Three Round Cairns on y Gamriw stands on Ashgill Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Ashgill. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.