Tinkinswood
Tinkinswood
Neolithic dolmen in Wales
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]