Gwynedd Archaeological
Trust Regional Historic Environment Record
Maen y Bardd Burial Chamber, Caerhun
Primary Reference Number (PRN) : 529 Trust : Gwynedd Community : Caerhun Unitary authority : Conwy NGR : SH74067178 Site Type (preferred type first) : NEOLITHIC CHAMBERED TOMB Status : Snowdonia National Park
Summary : A well known and well visited burial chamber of portal dolmen type, located near the Roman road from Caerhun to Caernarfon. The stone chamber is still intact but the shape of the cairn which would once have covered it is confused by the remains of later field boundaries. Located within a rich multi-period archaeological landscape, the presence of a Bronze Age cist grave and two standing stones close by indicate that this was probably a well travelled route way long before the construction of the Roman road.
Description : Maen y Bardd is a cromlech standing on ground falling to the SE, on the N side of the Roman road leading from Caerhun to Caernarfon. It is in good condition. <1>
The burial chamber is as described by RCAHM. <2>
A simple burial chamber of orthostats supporting a large capstone. <3>
No sign of a barrow of any kind. Miss Lynch, however, refers to the chamber as set in an amorphous cairn. <4>
The rectangular chamber of orthostatic slabs lies on quite a significant slope and lies within an uphill/downhill bounday which is a stony bank surrounded by a wall. Part of this bank may be an eroded mound but it is difficult to say without excavation. A detailed contour survey would also be helpful. (Smith 2002)
“It consists of a capstone resting on four upright stones. The capstone measures about 12 feet 9 inches by 8 feet in its greatest length and width, its thickness being about 2½ feet. The average height of the supports is about 4 feet 4 inches. The entrance is S. by E. It is locally known as ”Cwt y Filiast," and is sometimes called “Cwt y Bugail” (Shepherd's Hut), but perhaps this latter term may apply to a stone cist close by.” (Bezant Lowe, 1912).
