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Monuments and Landscape in Atlantic Europe, Scarre

Monuments and Landscape in Atlantic Europe, Scarre

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<< Our Photo Pages >> Gwernvale - Chambered Tomb in Wales in Powys

Submitted by Johnny on Monday, 23 September 2002  Page Views: 15812

Neolithic and Bronze AgeSite Name: Gwernvale Alternative Name: Crickhowell
Country: Wales County: Powys Type: Chambered Tomb
Nearest Town: Abergavenny  Nearest Village: Crickhowell
Map Ref: SO2111119217  Landranger Map Number: 161
Latitude: 51.865932N  Longitude: 3.147109W
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
3 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
2 Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
5 Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
5

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Brian_Eyes saw from a distance on 2nd Aug 2020

coin visited - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 1 Access: 4

SandyG AngieLake hamish TheCaptain eyesopen have visited here

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by cerrig : Looking north, towards the Black Mountains. (Vote or comment on this photo)
The stark remains of this neolithic chambered cairn are unfortunately sited within feet of the busy A40, alterations to which have seriously damaged the monument.

Gwernvale was constructed on the site of an earlier neolithic settlement and, although only eight slabs of a polygonal chamber are now visible, excavation has shown that Gwernvale belongs to the Cotswold-Severn class of long barrow: it had a horned forecourt and false portal stone to the east and three lateral chambers, two entered from the south side, one from the north with a fourth chamber, or cist, at the western end of the cairn.
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Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by jadewood : September 2007 (Vote or comment on this photo)

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by cerrig : Looking up the hill north-east. The white building beyond the trees is the Manor Hotel, a very posh place. It was known, in the past, as Everest House. At that time it was the family home of George Everest, who was in charge of the British surveying team who were mapping India, and who had the famous mountain named after him. According to my information, it's likely that he never actually saw the ... (4 comments - Vote or comment on this photo)

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by jadewood : September 2007 (Vote or comment on this photo)

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by jadewood (1 comment - Vote or comment on this photo)

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by howe : This Cotswold-Severn chambered cairn is not much to look at these days, but this general view of the site during excavation in 1978 shows the upright stones of three chambers, only one of which is now displayed. (1 comment)

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by AngieLake : The small red stone shown in closer view. (See previous photo for info on its slab.) I'm wondering if this one occurred here naturally, or if it's possible that someone stuck it on for effect? If ancient, maybe it was a reason to choose this slab? [As Ness would say: 'What's occurin'?] Rune? You're good at stones... ;-) (4 comments)

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by cerrig : Looking south-west.

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by cerrig : Looking south.

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by cerrig : Looking East, along the A40 towards Crickhowell.

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by howe : View of the drystone double 'skin' of the cairn being excavated

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by howe : This view, taken during excavation, shows one of the side chambers with the passage to it full of the blocking which was the final act of sealing the tomb (2 comments)

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by AngieLake : A reconstruction of the appearance of Gwernvale from 'The Brecon Beacons National Park' [Countryside Commission Official Guide] by Roger Thomas, Webb & Bower (Michael Joseph), 1987. What fascinated me was the arrangement of posts at the 'false entrance' in the horned forecourt, as I always get three or four 'rod-openings' [ie: my L-shaped rods open at right-angles to each other] on final approac...

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by hamish : Tried very hard not to have speeding cars in the photos but impossible on a Sunday afternoon.

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by hamish : There are small stones outlining the extent of the original barrow,must have been quite a sight once.

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by hamish : It is amazing how this has survived despite the road widening.Easy to park,easy to explore.

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by SandyG : A wet Sunday afternoon in 1978.

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by Bladup : Gwernvale.

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by Garn : Gwernvale Longbarrow/ chambered tomb... October 6th 2012 3.30 pm

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by Garn : A sunny October day. Hopefully the ivy's done no damage to the stones...

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by AngieLake : "Gwernvale might have been constructed as shown in this 'cut-away' drawing." Quote under diagram on P.10 in 'Prehistoric Peoples, their life and legacy', a Brecon Beacons National Park publication, 1996. ("Drawing on p.10 by W. Britnell.")

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by AngieLake : Came across this plan of Gwernvale in 'Prehistoric Peoples, their life and legacy', a 1996 Brecon Beacons National Park publication, last week. It's attributed to 'Britnell, 1984'. Details to be added to site page.

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by AngieLake : This picture taken during the actual excavation of Gwernvale in 1978 appears in a paperback guide 'Prehistoric Peoples, their life and legacy', produced for the Brecon Beacons National Park in 1996. (Had to shrink it quite a lot to get the 'less than 320 kbs'!) Will add notes to site page later.

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by AngieLake : The road-facing side of the stone nearest camera in the previous shot I'd posted. Note the small red stone, left of centre. [Close-up to be added next.]

Gwernvale
Gwernvale submitted by AngieLake : Looking over the shoulders of the lower stones at Gwernvale, the leafy one resembles a comical Green Man. 13 June.

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Re: Gwernvale by sem on Wednesday, 31 May 2017
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OS grid ref (Archwilio) SO2111119217 [updated, thank you]
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Re: Gwernvale's History by AngieLake on Saturday, 23 July 2011
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Quote from 'Prehistoric People, their life and legacy', a Brecon Beacons National Park paperback publication from 1996. [NB: The plan of the mound's layout drawn by Britnell 1984 with the green background was under this extract from the book, on page 3 of the pull-out field guide.]:

"Gwernvale SO 2112 1921

Large stones, the remains of one chamber, are exposed in a wide highway verge adjacent to the A40, at the bottom of the drive to the Gwernvale Manor Hotel about 500 km to the north-west of Crickhowell.
A single parking space is available. The outline of the original cairn (depicted on a small interpretive panel) is marked by low concrete posts.

Previously partly covered by the A40, this cairn was excavated in 1978 when the line of the road was altered. The excavation established that the cairn was built where there had been earlier activity, beginning in the Mesolithic period and ending in occupation in the Neolithic period, before the construction of the cairn. This earlier activity was probably of a domestic nature, but a rectangular timber structure identified from post-holes within the area of the eastern forecourt suggested that ceremonial activities took place here before the tomb itself was built.

The cairn was originally about 45m in length with a forecourt at the broader eastern end and four chambers within the body of the cairn. Each of the chambers would have been used for communal burial by the agricultural communities in the vicinity. There is evidence that the entrances to the chambers, from the sides of the cairn, were blocked after each successive internment. Final blocking of the chambers and the obscuring of chamber entrances, forecourt and outer walls of the cairn was achieved by an overall covering of stones.

Little human skeletal material was found during the excavation, as much of the tomb had suffered interference and robbing in the past. Agricultural activities were indicated by finds of quern-stones for grinding corn, the presence of charred emmer wheat, and fragments of animal bone, including red deer and domesticated cattle, sheep and pig. Other finds included Mesolithic and Neolithic flint tools such as arrowheads, knives, scrapers and axes, and Neolithic pottery."

On another page, discussing Cotswold-Severn tombs:
".... built on both sides of the Bristol Channel from Gower to the Wiltshire hills. Gwernvale was of this type. These tombs must have been very important to the Neolithic people. To dig out 10,000 cubic metres of earth in order to raise an earthen long barrow, or to fabricate a stone tomb shifting 50-ton slabs of rock in the process is serious work. It requires a high degree of organisation to construct such edifices.
Each tomb contained scores of burials probably accumulated over many hundreds of years. Those buried in the tombs therefore, can represent only a small proportion of the total Neolithic population. Archaeologists disagree as to the likely total population of this period - figures of up to 200,000 are mentioned. ........"
"... There are interesting suggestions as to the purpose of the tombs. Obviously, ritual was one function but could there have been a status element? Another suggestion which makes a great deal of sense is that the tombs were territorial markers or nuclei. Just as Mediaeval churches were important as a nucleus to each parish, so it could be that the tombs were significant as structures which delineated territories in the Neolithic. It is interesting to note that some of these tombs were in use 5600 years ago, a thousand years before the Egyptians of the Old Kingdom built their pyramids."
"..........."
"From 3000 BC there must have been a change in society because gradually the long barrows and megalithic tombs ceased to be used and were sealed up and abandoned (the Gwernvale tomb, for example, was sealed around 2,500 BC). Burial practices changed, with round barrows taking the place of the chambere

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Street View by coldrum on Sunday, 21 March 2010
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Re: Gwernvale by coldrum on Wednesday, 13 January 2010
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Coflein entry.

http://www.coflein.gov.uk/en/site/98/details/GWERNVALE+CHAMBERED+TOMB%2C+CRICKHOWELL/
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Re: Gwernvale by TimPrevett on Saturday, 02 September 2006
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Mystery - found a disposable surgical hat here on my visit a week ago! Among litter at ancient monuments, this has to be among the more unusual finds. Makes a change from the beer cans.

Small picture of the excavations on p16 of Helen Burnham's guide to Powys.
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Re: Gwernvale by coldrum on Monday, 27 June 2005
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Having been driven past this over the years whilst going to and from holiday destinations I now know what it is.
Forgot all about it (well been a long time since been to wales) untill this weekend when drove past it again and decided to find out.
Curiosity satisfied.
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Re: Gwernvale by TheCaptain on Tuesday, 13 July 2004
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Went to Cardiff museum over the weekend to see the Buried Treasure exhibition - fantastic.

But while there looked in to the archaeology bit of the regular museum, where they have some finds and photographs from here. The thing that really struck me was just how much of this monument there was not too long ago, which has now all gone. It seems absolutely criminal that this once magnificent monument has been so totally destroyed only 25 years ago. And the road hasnt even been built through it, so it could have been left for us all to see.
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Re: Gwernvale by TheCaptain on Thursday, 06 May 2004
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Gwernvale, Chambered Tomb in Powys, SO211192
Visited Sunday, 2nd May 2004

The remains of this once impressive tomb lie right beside the busy A40 (which in fact goes right through part of the barrow) just to the north of Crickhowell at a junction with a small road that leads to a hotel. There is room to park just to the side of this side road, within a few yards of the tomb. Apparently much of the destruction was done during 1978 in order to widen the road.

Small concrete posts have been positioned which mark out the edges to what was obviously once a very fine long barrow, 45 metres in length, with a horned entrance at the south east end and several side chambers. The only stone remains today are a single large chamber, which was lined with large stone slabs, and parts of its long entrance passage way leading to the south west side (and into the road).

Trying to get pictures without masses of traffic on a bank holiday weekend was not easy !
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Re: Gwernvale by chumbawala on Friday, 21 March 2003
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Frighteningly close to the A40, the road literally carves through this cairn, not for the faint hearted!
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