CM048

Burial Chamber near Cross Hands  

 

Designated  

Carmarthenshire  

Llanboidy  

219577  

222947  

Religious, Ritual and Funerary  

Chambered Tomb  

Prehistoric  

The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Ancient Monument. The monument comprises the remains of a chambered tomb, dating to the Neolithic period (c. 4,400 BC - 2,900 BC). Chambered tombs were built and used by local farming communities over long periods of time. There appear to be many regional traditions and variations in shape and construction. The burial chamber is situated in the corner of the garden of a private dwelling, adjoining the hedge line. There are two upright stones and one displaced white quartz capstone which lies 3m to the south. The northern most orthostat is rectangular in cross section with a pointed top and measures, 1.8m in height, 1m wide and has a depth of 0.3m. The southern stone is triangular in section and has measures 2m in height, 1.3m wide and a depth of 0.3m thick. The large irregular capstone is 2m in length, 1.5m wide and has a thickness of 0.6m. The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of prehistoric burial and ritual. The monument is an important relic of a prehistoric funerary and ritual landscape and retains significant archaeological potential, with a strong probability of the presence of both intact burial or ritual deposits and environmental and structural evidence, including a buried prehistoric land surface. Chambered tombs 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.