Scheduled MonumentsWalesTwo Burnt Mounds 600m ESE of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm
Prehistoric · Burnt Mound

Two Burnt Mounds 600m ESE of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm

Carmarthenshire, Wales
Cadw SAM CM285
Period
Prehistoric
Site type
Burnt Mound
Broad class
Domestic
Nation
Wales
The designation
Reference
Cadw SAM CM285
Authority
Cadw
Designated
1996-10-29
Boundary

Scheduled area

© Mapbox · © OpenStreetMap contributors · Boundary data © Cadw

Overview

History & significance

Two Burnt Mounds, located 600 metres east-south-east of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm, is a prehistoric burnt mound of Bronze Age date. The monument comprises two distinct mounds composed of burnt stone and charcoal, evidence of ancient thermal technology used to heat water for bathing, cooking or metalworking. The site's underlying Pridoli bedrock—a mudstone, siltstone and sandstone sequence—would have provided raw material readily available to prehistoric communities working the Welsh landscape.

Burnt mounds are characteristic features of Bronze Age settlement across Britain and Ireland, though their precise function remains debated among archaeologists. The preservation of two separate mounds at this location is noteworthy, suggesting repeated or extended use of the site. The accumulation of heat-shattered stones resulted from heating rocks in fires before plunging them into water-filled troughs, a labour-intensive process that speaks to the value placed on hot-water activities in prehistoric society.

The monument is protected by Cadw, the Welsh Historic Monuments service, under reference CM285. The rural setting near Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm preserves the burnt mounds within their original landscape context, enabling study of their relationship to contemporary settlement patterns and resources across the Welsh uplands.

Two Burnt Mounds 600m ESE of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference CM285. View the official record →

About this monument

Questions & answers

What is Two Burnt Mounds 600m ESE of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm?

Two Burnt Mounds, located 600 metres east-south-east of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm, is a prehistoric burnt mound of Bronze Age date. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Cadw under reference CM285.

What period does Two Burnt Mounds 600m ESE of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm date from?

Two Burnt Mounds 600m ESE of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm dates from the prehistoric period, and is classified as a burnt mound. It is one of over 32,000 scheduled monuments protected across the UK.

Who is responsible for protecting Two Burnt Mounds 600m ESE of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm?

Two Burnt Mounds 600m ESE of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm 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 CM285.

What other scheduled monuments are near Two Burnt Mounds 600m ESE of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm?

Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Cincoed Limestone Quarries and Kilns (3.1 km), Group of Burnt Mounds 300m SSW of Cilcoll Farm (3.1 km), Limekilns East of Cincoed (3.3 km).

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Two Burnt Mounds 600m ESE of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm

This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Two Burnt Mounds 600m ESE of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm'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.
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The ground beneath

The bedrock under Two Burnt Mounds 600m ESE of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm

Two Burnt Mounds 600m ESE of Rhyd-y-Ffynnon Farm stands on Pridoli Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Pridoli. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.