Bedd Arthur ("Arthur's Grave") is a possibly
Neolithic
The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...
hengiform monument megalithic site in the
Preseli Hills in the
Welsh county of
Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and otherwise by the sea. Haverfordwest is the largest town and ...
. Thirteen upright stones and at least 2 fallen ones, each around high form an oval horseshoe with similarities to the earliest form of
Stonehenge
Stonehenge is a prehistoric Megalith, megalithic structure on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, to ...
.
Description
Bedd Arthur consists of a barely visible oval bank and ditch, with thirteen
standing stone
A menhir (; from Brittonic languages: ''maen'' or ''men'', "stone" and ''hir'' or ''hîr'', "long"), standing stone, orthostat, or lith is a large upright rock (geology), stone, emplaced in the ground by humans, typically dating from the Eur ...
s, none higher than arranged inside along with two further fallen stones. The stone layout measures around . The shape is not well defined and is generally described as sub-rectangular
but has been described as a rectangle, a horseshoe, an oval and a pointed ellipse. Such arrangements of stones are also found at a site known as the 'Churchyard' on
Skomer Island, and were adopted at Stonehenge, for which and Bedd Arthur has been speculatively suggested as a prototype.
[
The stones appear to be leaning inwards, suggesting that they were originally placed on the flanks of a mound which has since disappeared. There is also one "truncated end", similar to the portal on some elongated ]Neolithic
The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...
burial mounds. There may have been a burial chamber in the middle of the stone setting: it would not be exceptional for the mound itself to have been removed by erosion or grave hunters, as may have happened to the Bedd yr Afanc passage grave on the northern side of Mynydd Preseli.
Name
It is one of many sites in the British Isles to be claimed by local folklore as the burial place of King Arthur
According to legends, King Arthur (; ; ; ) was a king of Great Britain, Britain. He is a folk hero and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain.
In Wales, Welsh sources, Arthur is portrayed as a le ...
. The name Bedd Arthur means Arthur's Grave. There are numerous prehistoric sites around Pembrokeshire, claiming an association with Arthur. In the vicinity of Bedd Arthur, there are the Cromlechau Meibion Arthur in Nevern, Garn Arthur and Cerrig Meibion Arthur in Mynachiog-Ddu, and Bwrdd Arthur in Llanboidy
Stonehenge connection
It sits on top of the Preseli ridge and overlooks the rocky outcrop of Carn Menyn, a site that has been suggested as a source for some of the bluestones used at Stonehenge
Stonehenge is a prehistoric Megalith, megalithic structure on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, to ...
. A 2011 study of a particular group of the Stonehenge bluestones made of a Rhyolite
Rhyolite ( ) is the most silica-rich of volcanic rocks. It is generally glassy or fine-grained (aphanitic) in texture (geology), texture, but may be porphyritic, containing larger mineral crystals (phenocrysts) in an otherwise fine-grained matri ...
material identified a geological match with an outcrop at Rhosyfelin, north of Bedd Arthur. On the other hand, a 2015 archaeological studies at Rhosyfelin failed to identify any signs of quarrying, which appears to promote the possibility of the stones as glacial erratics carried east on an ice-flow, rather than a Neolithic
The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...
cultural link between the two places.
Site
The site has not been excavated and is absent from authoritative surveys. Its authenticity as a site, and any relationship to Stonehenge or local sources of stone are therefore unconfirmed.
The site is in Eglwyswrw community, and is a Scheduled monument
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change.
The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage, visu ...
with legal protection from disturbancePembrokeshire Coast National Park
Pembrokeshire Coast National Park () is a National Parks of England and Wales, national park along the Pembrokeshire coast in west Wales.
It was established as a National Park in 1952. It is one of the three National parks of Wales, the others ...
.
See also
* List of Scheduled prehistoric Monuments in north Pembrokeshire
References
{{Authority control
Prehistoric sites in Pembrokeshire
Megalithic monuments in Wales
Stone Age sites in Wales
Newport, Pembrokeshire
Locations associated with Arthurian legend