Mynydd Cilfach-yr-Encil

Nearest town:
Merthyr Tydfil (5km WNW)
OS reference:
SO079034
OS sheet:
170
Latitude:
51° 43' 16.56 N
Longitude:
3° 20' 0.49 W
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Images

Image of Mynydd Cilfach-yr-Encil (Cairn(s)) by thesweetcheat

Northern cairn II, the eastern of the northern pair. Barely 20cm high around its rim, it really needs an eye of faith to make this one out. The rim is a slightly lighter green. Looking east.

Image credit: A. Brookes (26.3.2022)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Mar 23, 2023
Image of Mynydd Cilfach-yr-Encil (Cairn(s)) by thesweetcheat

North cairn I, the western of the pair at the northern tip of the ridge. Looking west.

Image credit: A. Brookes (26.3.2022)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Mar 23, 2023
Image of Mynydd Cilfach-yr-Encil (Cairn(s)) by thesweetcheat

Summit cairn I, looking northwest towards Merthyr Tydfil. On a less hazy day, the Brecon Beacons would be visible on the horizon.

Image credit: A. Brookes (26.3.2022)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Mar 23, 2023
Image of Mynydd Cilfach-yr-Encil (Cairn(s)) by thesweetcheat

Summit cairn I, the northeastern and better preserved of the two cairns on the summit of Mynydd Cilfach-yr-Encil. Looking NE towards Mynydd Fochriw.

Image credit: A. Brookes (26.3.2022)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Mar 23, 2023
Image of Mynydd Cilfach-yr-Encil (Cairn(s)) by thesweetcheat

The southern of the two summit cairns, showing the dished centre. If there ever was a trig pillar here, it’s long gone now. Looking north, with Merthyr Tydfil the distant town on the left.

Image credit: A. Brookes (26.3.2022)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Mar 22, 2023
Image of Mynydd Cilfach-yr-Encil (Cairn(s)) by thesweetcheat

The southern ring cairn from the east. The eastern rim is less well defined than the other sides, and looks to me to have been eroded by the track running close by, exposing the stones to the bottom left.

Image credit: A. Brookes (26.3.2022)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Mar 22, 2023
Image of Mynydd Cilfach-yr-Encil (Cairn(s)) by thesweetcheat

The southern ring cairn from the south, with the clear rim defined by the darker vegetation.

Image credit: A. Brookes (26.3.2022)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Mar 22, 2023
Image of Mynydd Cilfach-yr-Encil (Cairn(s)) by thesweetcheat

The southern ring cairn from the west, showing the outcrop incorporated into the edge. Looking towards Carn y Bugail and Gelligaer Common.

Image credit: A. Brookes (26.3.2022)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Mar 22, 2023
Image of Mynydd Cilfach-yr-Encil (Cairn(s)) by thesweetcheat

The southern ring or platform cairn at SO0796003010. The rim is defined by the darker heather, with the outcrop incorporated into the western (right) edge. Looking NNE, with the summit on the left.

Image credit: A. Brookes (26.3.2022)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Mar 22, 2023

Articles

Miscellaneous

Mynydd Cilfach-yr-Encil
Cairn(s)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Mar 18, 2023

Coflein descriptions, north to south:

Northern cairn I (SO0792003970)

A turf-covered cairn with many stones exposed, much of the cairn having been robbed. There are no visible traces of a cist or other structural features, nor of a surrounding ditch. The cairn measures 11.6m diameter and takes the form of a platform 0.1m high with a rim 2.5m wide raised to 0.3m high. On the north-east is superimposed eccentrically a second mound 6.1m in diameter and 0.3m high. The latter may well have resulted from interference with the mound. The site is otherwise as described in 1960 (RC Inventory) and 1979 (OS).

Northern cairn II (SO0795003980)

A low circular bank 1.5m wide and 0.2m high, 15m in overall diameter. Set eccentrically (SW) within the otherwise level and stoneless interior lies a mutilated mound 5m in diameter and 0.2m high.

Summit cairn I (SO0791303464)

This grass-covered stony mound lies in a prominent position on top of a ridge on Merthyr Common. It measures 9m (N-S) by 8m and 0.5m high and has an uneven dished surface. When the area was surveyed as part of the Uplands Initiative by Trysor in 2012 vegetation cover was bilberries and grass.

Summit cairn II (SO0788003330)

A turf-covered cairn measuring 4.8m in diameter and 0.5m high is surmounted by a OS trig pillar. This may represent the re-use of a round barrow though the mound may have been created to support the pillar.

Southern cairn (SO0796003010)

A cairn on open land is defined by a slightly raised circular platform and measures 12m in overall diameter. Around it is a perimeter bank 2m wide and 0.3m high which contains three protruding stones. But on its west side it is dominated by outcropping rock and boulders. A possible ring cairn or rimmed platform cairn.

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