Ancient Anglesey - Ynys Môn

Bodowyr Burial Chamber (4000 - 3000 BC)

2013-01-03T16:10:00.000-08:00

OS Map ref: SH461681 53.188256,-4.302990

Situated in a prime hill-side spot north west of the village of Brynsiencyn (Jenkin's hill), this cromlech or dolmen is 'amazingly' still standing... It no longer has it's original circular earth mound covering which has been described in very early texts some 250 years ago.

The site has never been excavated, but is assumed to have been a passage grave. The passage will have been to the eastern side where there is still a lower sill stone as seen in this photograph. According to Frances Lynch^[1] the layout of Bodowyr may be compared with the other simple passage grave, Ty Mawr, also on the island and those at Carrowmore (Co. Sligo) and Burton (Pembrokeshire).

To quote the Rev. J. Skinner in his extremely charming (if not always 100% accurate) writings of his trip around Anglesey in 1802^[2], "That cromlechs were not always used (if they were at all) as altars for sacrifice I think may be demonstrated by the one before us (as its Pyramidical form is by no means adapted to the purpose. Indeed there is a tradition amongst the Welsh that this rude memorial was erected over the grave of a British princess named Bronwen who flourished in the year of the world 3105!!!!)"

The chamber consisted of four upright side stones (one is now fallen), topped by a huge mushroom shaped capstone. The sill stone at the entrance is not a common feature of simple passage graves like this one but does occur in more elaborate later ones like the Cruciform Passage Graves in Ireland^[3].

Access
After crossing Stephenson's Britania bridge on the A55 turn first left onto the A5 towards Llanfairpwllgwyngyll. Just after passing the Marquess of Anglesey column turn left onto the A4080 Newborough road. Follow this road for 4.5 miles passing through Brynsiencyn and take the first right after a sharp left hand bend just before leaving the village, signposted for Caer Lêb Iron Age settlement. Pass by Caer Lêb down the hill and over the river up to a staggered crossroads. Go left and immediate right and the tomb is 500m on the right where there is space to park two cars. You will see the cromlech from the road, climb over stile to get into the field.

Gallery (click on thumbnails to view the larger picture and enter film strip viewer) or see my Bodowyr slideshow

References / Further Reading
^[1] Powell, Corcoran, Lynch, Scott. Megalithic Enquiries in the West of Britain 1969 (pp 117)
^[2] Skinner, John. Ten Days Tour through The Isle of Anglesey 1802 (pp 15)
^[3] Lynch, Frances. Prehistoric Anglesey 1970 (pp 28)
Bodowyr - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
GeoHack - Bodowyr - maps, photos, wiki and much more

Bryn Celli Ddu Chambered Cairn (3000-2000 BC)

2012-10-10T21:01:00.000-07:00

OS Map ref: SH507702 53.2075,-4.2355
One of the best preserved ancient burial grounds is the chambered cairn at Bryncelli Ddu (hill of the dark grove). The earth mound was actually added in more recent times to indicate what it would have been like, but the original will have been much larger, extending right to the circular edge stones surrounding it.

The original prehistoric stone circle on this site is from the neolithic period which could have been as old as 4,000 BC, the later burial tomb being about five thousand years old! It was originally constructed as a henge and used for worship or other important rituals of the day. Henges are not that common in Wales, being more of an english thing like the rather well known circle in Wiltshire, 'Hengestone' or something like that. Actually the stones used for Stonehenge came from the Preseli mountains, in southern Wales.

The ancient henge here used local limestone in its construction and was surrounded by a ditch. It probably looked something like the artists impression to the left which is at the site. Just seeing the remains of this henge is a treat, to be able to physically touch a structure that was created so many thousand years ago.

The story doesn't end there though. Some time later the henge was converted into a burial tomb or 'cromlech'. This dolmen features an entrance passage and central chamber made from huge pieces of stone. Structures like this are referred to as megalithic which means 'great stone' in ancient greek. Tombs with a long entrance such as this are called passage tombs and are to be found mainly on the Atlantic side of Europe. The passage here is 27 feet (8.2m) long, the inner part roofed by two huge capstones up to 16 feet in length, the outer open part 10ft. (3m) long. Two tall standing stones mark the intersection between them and were originally topped by a large lintel.

The burial chamber is not round but forms a polygon due to the fact that it's sides are formed by huge stones and is between 7 and 10 feet across with a smooth circular standing stone inside. The current placement of this stone I find very dubious as it is simply where it led flat when visited in 1802 by the Rev. John Skinner, following unfortunately inevitable plundering. His sketch^[1] showing the pillar being central to the chamber I find more credible. The purpose of this stone, as it is not structural, is the subject of much debate but I think it is a phallic symbol, just as I think the design of the tomb itself represents the earth goddess's womb.

As with many neolithic constructs, astronomy plays a part in the design. Who can say how many seasonal events may be highlighted somehow in the design, but Steve Burrow, curator of neolithic archaeology at Amgueddfa Cymru, witnessed in 2006^[2] that on midsummers day the rising sun shines through the passageway and lights up a stone to the rear of the chamber.

The stone to the right is a replica of a stone found laying flat over a pit where remains were found including a bone from the human ear, and could have been a centre stone for the original henge monument. The original stone, pictured here courtesy of Wolfgang Sauber, is in the Welsh Museum. It has lines etched into it with a an artistic style that is only found in one other place in Wales, 11 miles (18 km) to the east of here at Barclodiad y Gawres. These styles of engraving are more common and abundant in Irish passage graves like the internationally famous New Grange which have been classed as the 'Boyne type'^[3] after the local river there. There are also similar designs in other european megalithic tombs. A much fuller discussion of this can be found in Piggot (1954, 193-222)^[4].

This may all seem ancient enough, but postholes outside the tomb have been dated to over 6,000 years ago!

There is a large rocky mound to the north west at a bearing of aboout 10 o'clock which I would have investigated further had it not been on private land. Curiously there is a tall standing stone further up a hill in that direction at exactly the same bearing, so much so that, if one stands directly in front of this stone, the mound of Bryn Celli Ddu is completely obscured from view.

I have blown up the pictures I took to show this, in front of the stone left and then to the right from a picture I took standing a metre or two away from the stone where it is easy to see the burial mound. From Bryn Celli Ddu only the top of this standing stone can be seen from certain parts of the site.

Access
After crossing Stephenson's Britania bridge on the A55 turn first left onto the A5 towards Llanfairpwllgwyngyll. Just after passing the Marquess of Anglesey column turn left onto the A4080 Newborough road. Follow this road for 2.2 miles then turn right at the crossroads after Plas Newydd signposted Bryncelli Ddu. After about half a mile park on the left of the road and follow the signs for the cairn, using the asphalted CADW footpath which involves climbing over steps from the road.

Gallery (click on thumbnails to view the larger picture and enter film strip viewer) or see my Bryn Celli Ddu slideshow

References / Further Reading
^[1] Archaeologia Cambrensis Tour in Anglesea Parochialia 1908-11 (pp 24)
^[2] Sensational new discoveries at Bryn Celli Ddu
^[3] Powell, T. G. E.. The Passage Graves of Ireland (1938)
^[4] Piggot, Stuart. The Neolithic Cultures of the British Isles (1954)
Bryn Celli Ddu - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
GeoHack - Bryn Celli Ddu - maps, photos, wiki and much more

Presaddfed Burial Chambers (4000 - 3000 BC)

2012-10-02T16:28:00.000-07:00

OS Map ref: SH34768089
53.299120, -4.480991

Sitting in a meadow on a low lying valley near a marshy lake the chambers of Presaddfed are something of a quandry to archaeoloigists. Their design resembles that of passage graves on the island and elsewhere, but these are virtually exclusively situated on higher ground.

The close proximity of the two chambers could suggest that the northern, now collapsed, stones formed part of the passage to the larger chamber. However this cannot be the case as the northern support stone (orthostat) of the huge capstone of the larger chamber would have blocked this passage. Most historians writing on the matter in the past have concurred that they were passage graves with entrances to both tombs lying on the eastern side.

However these chambers were habitually covered with stones and earth to make a cairn and these two are so close to each other that they would have had to be covered by the same cairn. This may suggest that the chambers formed a gallery grave. Frances Lynch, a leading modern archaeologist on North Wales wrote " unlikely in view of its low-lying position, and would tentatively suggest that it may have been a series of closed chambers and should possibly be linked with the 'long graves'..., this monument is incapable of satisfactory interpretation"^[1].

Pictures I have seen from as far back as autumn 2000 show a wooden frame supporting the capstone at the north end where there is only a single orthostat. Those from Autumn 2010 show the frame still there, but just leaning against the upright stone. Now (September 2011) it is no longer present nor, would it seem, necessary.

Two different drawings from both the early and the mid 19th century show the collapsed capstone of the northern chamber in a more elevated position, so it must have slipped over the last 200 years as can be seen on the right. These sketches also show that the other capstone was only supported by three of the four stones it now rests on, there being a gap of several inches to the eastward orthostat.

There is a story about the intact tomb by the great historian Rev. John Skinner, writing about his legendary 10 day tour of Anglesey on foot in December 1802^[2], "under this cromlech we were informed a whole family who had been ejected from their habitation sought shelter during the last winter".

Access
From A55 junction 5, take B5112 to Trefor (2.5 miles). Turn left along B5109 towards Bodedern. After 2.5 miles turn right signposted Presaddfed Shooting Club for about half a mile. Park on the left of the road and walk up the shooting club drive opposite. The chambers are in the field to the left with kissing gate and currently mown path across the field.

Gallery(click on a thumbnail to view the larger picture and enter film strip viewer) or see my Presaddfed slideshow movie on YouTube

References / Further Reading
^[1] Powell, Corcoran, Lynch, Scott. Megalithic Enquiries in the West of Britain 1969 (pp 123)
^[2] Skinner, John. Ten Days Tour through The Isle of Anglesey 1802 (pp 50)
Presaddfed (siambr gladdu) - Wicipedia (in Welsh)

Llanfechell Triangle (2000-1000 BC)

2012-04-02T10:10:00.000-07:00

OS Map ref: SH363916 53.3966 -4.46204

Gallery (click on thumbnails to view the larger picture and enter film strip viewer) or see my Llanfechell Triangle slideshow

Ty Newydd Burial Chamber (4000 - 3000 BC)

2011-09-25T17:26:00.002-07:00

OS Map ref: SH344738 53.2359,-4.4824

Situated on a gently sloping hillside west of the town of Rhosneigr the cromlech at Ty Newydd (new house) commands good views of the surrounding countryside. The chamber is all that remains of a simple passage grave which will have been covered by a cairn. This, along with those at Bodowyr and Ty-mawr, is likely to be one of the earliest neolithic burial chambers on the island. Although this is the only one of the three to have been excavated^[1], the results as regards dating weren't at all conclusive, as no human remains were found.

The current capstone appears to be very narrow, more so than any other cromlechs. I believe this is explained by a story that, more than 200 years ago, a tenant of the land lit a fire on top of the original stone to welcome home the then landowner, and the capstone split! This would be borne out by the description of the site when visited in 1802 by the Rev. John Skinner, whose drawings show the stones roughly as they are now, but there were also two other very large stones lying close by, one of which was the same length and thickness (16 feet by 3 feet) as the capstone still standing^[2]. The other large stone could have been part of the original passage roof.

Unfortunately, because these megaliths are so old and have been subject not only to the ravishes of time (at least 5,000 years in this case), but wanton 'recycling' to build newer things, they often end up in a sorry state which necessitates human intervention. One of the brick pillars pictured here was erected by the archaeologist C W Phillips following his excavation in 1935 and spoils the ancient look, but to quote Steve Burrow: "Although these pillars detract from the ambience of the tombs, they have prevented collapse so far"^[3].

Access
From A55 junction 5, turn onto the A4080 towards Rhoswneigr. After 2.8 miles and just before the village of Llanfaelog take the second of two right turns towards Bryngwran. After about half a mile look out for the monument sign on the right, just after a junction. Park on the right of the road (not much space) and climb over the stile and use the currently mown path that runs by a hedge along the edge of the field.

Gallery(click on thumbnails to view the larger picture and enter film strip viewer) or see my Ty Newydd slideshow movie on YouTube

References / Further Reading
^[1] Excavation report by C W Phillips, Archaeologia Cambrensis, 1936 (pp 93-99)
^[2] Archaeologia Cambrensis Tour in Anglesea Parochialia 1908-11 (pp 46-47)
^[3] Burrow, Steve, The Tomb Builders in Wales 4000-3000 BC, National Museum Wales Books, 2006 (pp 138)

Pant Y Saer Burial Chamber (3000-2000 BC)

2011-07-12T16:38:00.000-07:00

OS Map ref: SH509824
53.317473, -4.239724
Sitting on a rise above the seaside town of Benllech, Pant y Saer (known locally as "Cromlech Tynygongl") is less splendid looking than many burial chambers on Anglesey and not maintained by CADW. It was originally covered by a kidney shaped cairn with access from the side instead of the more usual passage entrance. In this respect it is similar to the much larger Bryn yr Hen Bobl which still has it's 38 metre cairn intact.

There were two main methods of constructing the inner chambers of these tombs with huge covering capstones weighing many tons. The first was to erect the orthostats (side supporting stones) and then build a gradually sloping ramp to one side and heave the capstone up this ramp on rollers. The other method was to locate a suitable nearby boulder and dig pits below to place smaller orthostats, then digging the chamber below the capstone, possibly also levering the capstone up and placing the uprights beneath, where the pit left by the boulder becomes the chamber area. This method is most evident at Ligwy (pictured right), which is a couple of miles to the north of here.

A great number of human remains were found here. It was reportedly raided by treasure hunters in the 1870's who took several jaw bones, then many more bones found before it was excavated by W. Lindsay Scott in 1933 (footn) who found more than 40 bodies.
In total remains of 54 people were found including men, women and children. Nine full term foetuses were discovered suggesting a high rate of death in childbirth, or maybe something more sinister and ritualistic?

The small size of the tomb and the fact the bodies had not been cremated suggests that it was used over a long period of time with the bodies placed here in their entirity and allowed to decompose and the bones moved aside for the next burial. Most of the skulls and long bones were missing which could indicate they had been plundered, but evidence from an undisturbed tomb in West Kennet, Wiltshire suggests that they may have been removed and used in rituals during the use of the chamber(sup).

In summer the dolmen almost hides in the lush wild vegetation, but is still majestic when spotted from a distance, especially with the magnificent Snowdonia mountains in the background.
I noticed some interesting engraving in one of the east supporting stones which has not been documented (click on the picture to the right to enlarge). Perhaps it has more modern origins, although it is in a pretty inaccessible place under the lower part of the huge capstone.

Access
From the north (400 metres walk): From the main road in Benllech (A5025) turn on to the B5108 at the Texaco petrol station in the direction of Brynteg. Follow this road for half a mile and park on the left hand pavement (sidewalk) outside a bungalow just after the first footpath sign which is the turning for the caravan site (with the Pant Y Saer farm sign). Just in front of you is the footpath with hedges on each side. Follow this path up to a gate and turn right up the hill and through the next gate on the left. Look up to the left corner of the field where there are farm and kissing gates. Through this gate and straight on, the chamber will come into view after about 100 yards.

From the south (300 metres walk): Heading north on the A5025 take the left hand turn "Lön Glyn" about a quarter mile south of the outskirts of Benllech, just before the 40mph signs. Head up this road skirting the houses to the right and down to the village of Bwlch (about 1 mile) and turn right on the minor lane where the road bends to the left. After 100 yards there is an unsigned kissing gate on the left. Park a little further up on the right hand side of the lane.
Walk back and go through the gate and head up the field keeping the trees/gorse to your right. Turn right near the top of the field at the post on the ground with the yellow footpath arrow (pictured right).

Gallery(click on a thumbnail to view the larger picture and enter film strip viewer) or see my Pant Y Saer slideshow movie on YouTube

Plas Newydd Burial Chamber (3000-2000 BC)

2011-07-01T14:56:00.000-07:00

This monument has not been classified by the experts and has never been excavated. It is situated in the grounds of a large country house, the grounds of which are currently owned by Cheshire County Council and rented by the National Trust. Entrance to the site requires paying a fee, but I asked in the shop for permission to view and photograph the monument for this blog.

After several pone calls by a very helpful young lady I was allowed access to the chambers, provided I stuck to a specific route to them (apparently for insurance purposes). Fortunately I timed this very well as a coach load of school children arrived whilst I was taking these photographs and made their way over to the megaliths.

The capstone of the larger chamber slopes upwards towards the north east where it is supported by three orthostats. Articles (Frances Lynch Megalithic Enquiries in the West of Britain 1969, pp122) suggest that the entrance could have been at this end and was closed when no longer in use. The lower end rests on two stones which rules out any form of connection to the smaller chamber which has been interpreted as a passage or a side-chamber.

I think the entrances to both chambers where at the south east side from the direction of this photograph where the smaller chamber has a sill stone half the height of the capstone and a larger stone, now on the ground, was at the entrance to the larger dolmen. This site would need to be excavated to discover it's true history.

Bryn Gwyn Standing Stones (2000-1000 BC)

2011-02-08T15:54:00.000-08:00

OS Map ref: SH462669
LAT,LONG: 53.177196, -4.3021429

(white or fair hill)
Tre'r Dryw Bach as other sites may say - this was a stone circle that has now completely disappeared save for these two remaining stones.

According to ancient