Scheduled MonumentsWalesThree Wells Round Cairn
Prehistoric · Round Cairn

Three Wells Round Cairn

Wales
Cadw SAM MM303
Period
Prehistoric
Site type
Round Cairn
Broad class
Religious, Ritual and Funerary
Nation
Wales
The designation
Reference
Cadw SAM MM303
Authority
Cadw
Designated
2002-07-30
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw

Overview

History & significance

Three Wells Round Cairn is a prehistoric round cairn located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference MM303. Round cairns of this type were constructed during the Neolithic or Bronze Age as burial monuments, typically comprising a mound of stacked stones heaped over a central grave or burial chamber. The monument's name references the locality and reflects the landscape that surrounds it.

The cairn sits upon Lower Devonian bedrock, composed of sandstone and conglomerate deposits that were laid down during the Early Devonian period over 400 million years ago. This underlying geology would have influenced the availability and type of stone used in the cairn's construction, with local stone sources worked into the mound by prehistoric builders. The interbedded nature of the sandstone and conglomerate would have provided varied material suitable for cairn construction.

As a scheduled ancient monument under Cadw's protection, Three Wells Round Cairn represents an important record of prehistoric funerary practice in Wales. Round cairns serve as visible reminders of early societies' monumental investment in commemorating and honouring their dead, and their presence across the Welsh landscape attests to sustained patterns of settlement and ceremonial activity spanning several centuries of prehistory.

Three Wells Round Cairn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference MM303. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Three Wells Round Cairn?

Three Wells Round Cairn is a prehistoric round cairn located in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference MM303.

What period does Three Wells Round Cairn date from?

Three Wells 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 Three Wells Round Cairn?

Three Wells 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 MM303.

What other scheduled monuments are near Three Wells Round Cairn?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Pen y Clawdd Castle Mound (3.7 km), Remains of St Michael's Chapel and Skirrid Fawr Defended Enclosure (5.8 km), St. Cadoc's Churchyard Cross, Llangattock Lingoed (5.9 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Three Wells Round Cairn

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Three Wells 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.
First month just £4.99, then £9.99 a month. Unlimited locations, cancel anytime.

Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

Start your Three Wells Round Cairn report
Or see a real report first
The ground beneath

The bedrock under Three Wells Round Cairn

Three Wells Round Cairn stands on Lower Devonian Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Early Devonian. The rock here is sandstone and conglomerate, interbedded.