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Y Domen Fawr is a prehistoric round cairn situated in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference GM588. The monument consists of a substantial mound of stones characteristic of Bronze Age funerary monuments, constructed during the early to middle centuries of the second millennium BC. Such cairns typically mark burial sites and served as focal points for ritual and commemoration within their communities.
The cairn stands upon bedrock of the South Wales Upper Coal Measures Formation, a deposit formed during the Westphalian period of the Carboniferous. This geological layer comprises mudstone, siltstone, sandstone, coal, ironstone and ferricrete, providing both the stable foundation and the stone resources available to the monument's builders. The local abundance of sandstone and other stone types would have allowed the construction of this substantial earthwork without the need for long-distance transport.
Like many Welsh cairns, Y Domen Fawr reflects the burial practices and monumental traditions of Bronze Age communities, whose landscape management and ceremonial architecture shaped the upland terrain. The monument's preservation as a scheduled site recognises its importance as evidence of prehistoric settlement patterns and ritual activity in the region.
Y Domen Fawr round cairn is a scheduled monument protected by Cadw under reference GM588. View the official record →
Y Domen Fawr is a prehistoric round cairn situated in Wales and protected by Cadw under reference GM588.
Y Domen Fawr 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.
Y Domen Fawr 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 GM588.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Platform Houses on East Side of Gelligaer Common (6.7 km), Pant Ffos-yr-hebog Cup-Marked Stone (6.9 km), St. Sannan's Churchayrd Cross, Bedwellty (6.9 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 13 strands of Y Domen Fawr round cairn'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.
Y Domen Fawr round cairn stands on South Wales Upper Coal Measures Formation, bedrock that formed in the Westphalian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone, sandstone, coal, ironstone and ferricrete.