Clap yr Arian

Nearest town:
Llandrindod Wells (14km ESE)
OS reference:
SN936699
OS sheets:
136, 147
Latitude:
52° 18' 59.13 N
Longitude:
3° 33' 39.99 W
Added to TMA by

Images

Image of Clap yr Arian (Cairn(s)) by Kammer

Taken 6th April 2003: The smaller of the two cairnes, standing just to the south of its neighbour. This shot is taken from the west (approximately) with my Landranger map for scale.

Image credit: Siomon Marshall
Kammer
Kammer Jun 6, 2003
Image of Clap yr Arian (Cairn(s)) by Kammer

Taken 6th April 2003: The largest of the visible kerb stones (on the large cairn). All the visible stones are on the western side of the cairn.

Image credit: Simon Marshall
Kammer
Kammer Jun 6, 2003
Image of Clap yr Arian (Cairn(s)) by Kammer

Taken 6th April 2003: The big cairn from the north east, with kerb stones visible, and my Landranger map for scale. Beyond the cairn is the hill that Maen Serth stands on.

Image credit: Simon Marshall
Kammer
Kammer Jun 6, 2003
Image of Clap yr Arian (Cairn(s)) by Kammer

Taken 6th April 2003: This is the largest of the two cairnes that I found, viewed from the north east.

Image credit: Simon Marshall
Kammer
Kammer Jun 6, 2003

Articles

Clap yr Arian

Kammer
Kammer Jun 6, 2003

Visited 6th April 2003: Although it’s an impressive place, this isn’t the kind of site I would usually go out of my way to visit. Luckily it’s sat betwixt Maengwyngweddw and Maen Serth, which makes for a lovely ridgeway walk.

There are two cairns that I could identify. One is really quite large, and is either a ring cairn or an excavated cairn (I’d go with the latter). It has some sizeable kerb stones on its western side, but nothing much elsewhere. Just to the south of the big cairn is a tiny one.

Miscellaneous

Clap yr Arian
Cairn(s)
Kammer
Kammer Apr 25, 2004

In his book The Spirit Paths of Wales (ISBN: 1-85284-289-X) Laurence Main states that, “two cairns stood here until 1910, when Council workmen destroyed the larger one and carted away its stones for road metal”. He also describes a Bronze Age axe-hammer found at the site, made from “spotted blue dolerite from Preseli”.

As ever, Main doesn’t include any of his sources, but I’ve read about the Council worker story somewhere else. Strangely, I discerned two cairns on my visit, so I’m not sure whether the smaller of the two was the ‘destroyed’ cairn of whether there were originally three cairns (probably the former).

Sites within 20km of Clap yr Arian

Like all websites everywhere, we use cookies.