Cof Cymru: National Historic Assets of Wales · Wales
Rhos y Gelynnen Ring Cairn
Rhayader, Powys, Wales
A scheduled monument in Rhayader, Powys, recorded as Ring Cairn (Prehistoric).
The record
- Designation
- Scheduled monument
- Site type
- Ring Cairn
- Period
- Prehistoric
- Date of designation
- 31 October 2002
- Community
- Rhayader
- Unitary authority
- Powys
- Country
- Wales
- Coordinates (centre of the scheduled area)
- 52.25467, -3.60386
- SAM number
- RD194
- Cadw record number
- 1046
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
5 historical maps cover this location, the earliest the 1608 map "(13) Cambriae Typus." (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries).
Historical maps covering this location
- 1608 · (13) Cambriae Typus. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
- 1830 · V.3:11-15:XV. Britisches Reich. A. Kon: England. b. Frstenthum Wales: Shire: 37-40 (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
- 1883 · Watershed map England, Wales 3. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
- 1898 · 179 Rhyader (Hills) (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
- 1901 · Sheet 14. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
Cadw's description
Summary description and reason for designation
The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Monument.
The monument comprises the remains of a ring cairn of earth and stone, which probably date to the Bronze Age (c. 2300 - 800 BC) and stands on the summit of Rhos y Gelynnen, with extensive views to the east and south. It comprises a circular bank of turfed-covered stones some 7m in diameter, 1.0m wide and 0.5m high, with a 0.75m wide entrance on the east side. Along its southern and western edges, the heap of stones making up the body of the cairn is held in place by a kerb of upright stones.
The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of prehistoric burial and ritual practices. The feature is an important relic of a prehistoric funerary and ritual landscape and retains significant archaeological potential. There is a strong probability of the presence of both intact ritual and burial deposits, together with environmental and structural evidence. Ring cairns may be 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. It is a circle and measures 10m in diameter, centred on the cairn.
Nearby in the register
- Rhos y Gelynnen Stone RowStone Rowunder 1 mi
- Cefn Llanerchi Standing StonesStone Alignmentunder 1 mi
- Carreg Ddu Viaduct and Submerged DamTransportunder 1 mi
- Foel Valve TowerWater Supply and Drainageunder 1 mi
Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.