Afon Bedol cairn and standing stone

Cadw's description

Summary description and reason for designation

The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The monument comprises the remains of a burial cairn, probably dating to the Bronze Age (c.2300 BC - 800 BC) and situated within open moorland on the lower SW-facing slopes of Cwm Tal-y-braich, immediately to the E of Afon Bedol. The grass and reed covered stone built cairn is circular on plan and measures about 9m in diameter and up to 0.6m in height. The cairn has been disturbed in the past, with a small hollow visible in its centre. A standing stone is situated about 5m to the S of the cairn; it measures 0.9m in height by 0.75m in width and 0.35m in thickness. The stone leans slightly towards the W. It is possible that this standing stone may be the sole surviving upright of a stone circle originally surrounding the cairn; however, the positions of the few possible remaining fallen stones are not conclusive.

The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of prehistoric burial and ritual. The monument is an important relic of a prehistoric funerary and ritual landscape and retains significant archaeological potential, with a strong probability of the presence of both intact burial or ritual deposits and environmental and structural evidence, including a buried prehistoric land surface. The importance of the monument is further enhanced by the group value formed by the proximity of the cairn to nearby monuments of similar date: Afon Bedol cist (CN361), Nant y Benglog cairn (CN370) and Bwlch Cowlyd cairn (CN362).

The area to be scheduled comprises the remains described and an area around them within which related evidence may be expected to survive. It is circular and measures 28m in diameter.