Lligwy Burial Chamber is a Neolithic burial chamber in Lligwy, near the east coast of Anglesey, Wales, United Kingdom. It consists of a circle of upright stones, made into a low chamber by a very large roof slab estimated at 25 tonnes. Excavation in 1909 found the remains of some 15 to 30 people, and pottery suggesting a late Neolithic date. Close to the village of Moelfre, the site is within a few metres of the road, where there is room to leave a single car for short periods.
Lligwy Burial Chamber is a very robust, neolithic chamber. The eight uprights which support the massive capstone are larger than they at first appear, because half of their 2 m (6.6 ft) height is buried in the ground. The capstone is about 5.5 m (18.0 ft) long and 4.5 m (14.8 ft) wide, with a thickness of around 1 m (3.3 ft). It is estimated to weigh about 25 tonnes (28 tons) and is in contact with only three of the uprights. A gap between the uprights on the eastern side probably indicates where an entrance passage stood, with a way out of the mound; It is unclear whether this chambered tomb was covered by a cairn, but if it was, no trace remains today. [1] Deep grooves in the limestone capstone imply that erosion by rainfall has taken place, further evidence that the structure may not have been covered by a cairn. [2]
Excavations in 1909 discovered artefacts in two separate layers, indicating that the site was used during two separate periods. The bones from up to thirty people have been found in the chamber, as well as shellfish (mussels and limpets) and many animal bones. Fragments of pottery from the two different settlements periods are present; grooved ware dating to the Neolithic period and beaker ware from the early Bronze Age. [1] Some 400 m (1,300 ft) to the west lies the well-preserved Din Lligwy hut circle, but this is not a contemporary structure, probably dating from the second to fourth centuries AD. [3]
Lligwy Burial Chamber is a scheduled ancient monument. The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales curates the archaeological, architectural and historic records for this site. Included in the archives are many digital images of the site, a DOE photographic collection, NMR site files, Cadw guardianship records, colour photographs, black and white photographs, aerial photographs and an extract from the June 1933 edition of Archaeologia Cambrensis with the title "The Pottery from the Lligwy Burial Chamber, Anglesey". [4]
The HeritageTogether project [5] has used photogrammetry to create 3D models of the site [6]
The burial chamber is in the care of Cadw; the site is open to the public, free of charge, throughout the year, except for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day. The burial chamber is very close to the road and can be accessed on foot from a parking bay at the edge of the unclassified road, about 0.75 mi (1.2 km) north of Llanallgo. [7]
Bryn Celli DduWelsh pronunciation:[brʌnkeːɬiðɨː] is a prehistoric site on the Welsh island of Anglesey located near Llanddaniel Fab. Its name means 'the mound in the dark grove'. It was archaeologically excavated between 1928 and 1929. Visitors can get inside the mound through a stone passage to the burial chamber, and it is the centrepiece of a major Neolithic Scheduled Monument in the care of Cadw. The presence of a mysterious pillar within the burial chamber, the reproduction of the 'Pattern Stone', carved with sinuous serpentine designs, and the fact that the site was once a henge with a stone circle, and may have been used to plot the date of the summer solstice have all attracted much interest.
Din Lligwy hut circle is an ancient village site near the east coast of Anglesey, close to the village of Moelfre, North Wales.
Moelfre ( ) is a village, a community and, until 2012, an electoral ward on the north-east coast of the Isle of Anglesey in Wales. The community area covers the village and harbour, and several smaller, dispersed settlements. It includes six scheduled Iron Age hut groups and many other sites of archaeological interest. The harbour was formerly a local fishing port; a lifeboat station has been based here since 1854. Among many shipwrecks off the coast was that of the Royal Charter in 1859. Near the modernised lifeboat station is the RNLI Seawatch Centre. The coastline includes a rocky headland north of the village and a large sandy beach at Lligwy Bay, both traversed by the Anglesey Coastal Path. The 2011 census measured the village population as 710. It was estimated at 614 in 2019.
Lligwy Bay is a bay of the Welsh island of Anglesey.
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The Holyhead Mountain Hut Circles named in Welsh: Tŷ Mawr / Cytiau'r Gwyddelod, literally meaning Big house or "Irishmen's Huts". are the remains of a group of Celtic Iron Age huts near Trearddur on Holy Island, Anglesey, Wales. The site is under the care of Cadw and can be visited all year round. The construction of these huts is very similar to those at Din Lligwy, having thick stone walls.
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Dyffryn Ardudwy is a village, community and electoral ward in the Ardudwy area of Gwynedd, Wales. It comprises several small, almost conjoined, villages including Coed Ystumgwern, Llanenddwyn, Llanddwywe, Talybont and Dyffryn Ardudwy. It is situated on the main A496 coast road between Harlech and Barmouth. The ward had a population of 1,540 according to the 2011 census.
Capel Lligwy is a ruined chapel near Rhos Lligwy in Anglesey, north Wales, dating back to the first half of the 12th century. The chapel's original purpose is unknown, but it might have been used as a memorial chapel or in connection with a local royal court, or as a chapel of ease in a large parish with a growing population. It was used for a time until the early 18th century as a private place of worship for a nearby house, then later fell into disrepair. The walls still remain, with some traces of render on them internally, but there is no roof.
The Grey Mare and her Colts is a megalithic chambered long barrow located near Abbotsbury in Dorset, England. It was built during the Early and Middle Neolithic periods. The tomb was partially excavated in the early nineteenth century, and was found to contain human bones and several pottery fragments.
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Presaddfed Burial Chamber is a listed monument in Anglesey, north Wales, comprising two Neolithic chamber tombs. It is a scheduled ancient monument and is located a short distance northwest of Bodedern. It is maintained by Cadw.
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