Location | St Nicholas and Duffryn Rural Communities |
---|---|
Region | Vale of Glamorgan (Bro Morgannwg), Wales (Welsh: Cymru) |
Coordinates | 51°27′4.96″N 3°18′29.17″W / 51.4513778°N 3.3081028°W |
Type | Dolmen[1] |
History | |
Periods | Neolithic |
Site notes | |
Condition | good with some damage |
Official name | Tinkinswood Burial Chamber[2] |
Reference no. | GM009[2] |
Tinkinswood or its full name Tinkinswood Burial Chamber (Welsh: Siambr Gladdu Tinkinswood), also known as Castell Carreg, Llech-y-Filiast and Maes-y-Filiast,[3] is a megalithic burial chamber, built around 6,000 years ago, during the Neolithic period, in the Vale of Glamorgan, near Cardiff, Wales.
The structure is called a dolmen,[1] which was the most common megalithic structure in Europe. The dolmen is of the Severn-Cotswold tomb type,[3][4] and consists of a large capstone on top, with smaller upright stones supporting it. The limestone capstone at Tinkinswood weighs approximately 40 long tons and measures 24 feet (7.3 m) x 14 ft (4.3 m);[3] it is thought to be the largest in Britain, and also in Europe.[5][6] It would have taken some 200 people to lift the stone into the correct position.[3] It was originally all covered by a mound of soil, which has been removed over time. The remaining mound behind the structure measures approximately 130 ft (40 m) x 59 ft (18 m) in size.[3]
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