St Lythans Chambered Tomb

St Lythans is the exposed chamber of a Neolithic burial monument near Cardiff. Its large capstone is supported by three tall uprights, but these stones once formed part of a much larger structure rather than an isolated open dolmen. Excavation around the monument in 2012 identified a substantial cairn approximately thirty metres long and twelve metres wide. Much of that covering has disappeared, leaving the chamber prominent in a field. According to Cadw, the chamber itself has not been excavated, so its contents and the identities or number of people buried there are not established. The site’s association with the Arthurian story of Culhwch and Olwen belongs to a later cultural tradition and is not evidence of its original builders. St Lythans is therefore valuable both for its surviving architecture and for the distinction between what investigation has revealed and what remains unknown. Period: Neolithic Grid reference: ST1009072300 Protection: Source: Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales (Coflein), https://coflein.gov.uk/en/site/227289 (Open Government Licence). This site data is from the National Monuments Record of Wales (NMRW), produced by RCAHMW. © Crown Database Right: RCAHMW, licensed under the Open Government Licence 3.0. Banner photo: "St Lythans Burial Chamber (3) - geograph.org.uk - 2242251" by John Lord, via Wikimedia Commons, licensed CC BY-SA 2.0.