Cof Cymru: National Historic Assets of Wales · Wales
The Four Stones
Old Radnor, Powys, Wales
The record
- Designation
- Scheduled monument
- Site type
- Stone Setting
- Period
- Prehistoric
- Community
- Old Radnor
- Unitary authority
- Powys
- Country
- Wales
- Coordinates (centre of the scheduled area)
- 52.24020, -3.10593
- SAM number
- RD004
- Cadw record number
- 1906
Slide toward Today to fade the historical sheet and see the modern map underneath.
David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford LibrariesDavid Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries
Shown on 5 historical map sheets, the earliest the 1608 "(13) Cambriae Typus." (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries).
Cadw's description
Summary description and reason for designation
The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Ancient Monument.
The monument consists of a stone setting, an arrangement of one or more standing stones, dating to the Late Neolithic or Early Bronze Age. The Four Stones are four large monoliths arranged in a very rough square. There are no markings on any of the stones. Stone 1, at the south-west, is about 1.65m high and stands c.2.6m to the south of Stone 2, which is c.1.8m high. Stone 3 stands c.3.7m to the east of Stone 2 and is c.1.2m high. Stone 4 stands 1.8m south of Stone 3 and 2.4m east of Stone 1 and is c.1.6m high. The distance between Stone 1 and 4 is 2.4m.
The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of prehistoric burial and ritual practices. The features are an important relic of a prehistoric funerary and ritual landscape and retain significant archaeological potential. There is a strong probability of the presence of both intact ritual and burial deposits, together with environmental and structural evidence. Stone settings are often part of a larger cluster of monuments and their importance can further enhanced by their group value.
The scheduled area comprises the remains described and areas around them within which related evidence may be expected to survive.
Nearby in the register
- Standing Stone 400m ENE of Four StonesStanding Stoneunder 1 mi
- Hindwell Farm Round BarrowsRound Barrowunder 1 mi
- Knapp Farm MoundMoundunder 1 mi
- Hindwell palisaded enclosurePalisaded Enclosureunder 1 mi
Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.