The Influence of People - Gower - page 52

FIG 24 . Sweyne's Howes on the eastern slope of Rhossili Down, traditionally the burial place of Sweyn, who may
have given his name to Swansea. (Jonathan Mullard)
Margaret Hodge for Figures
FIG 25 . Arthur's Stone, or Maen Ceti, situated on Cefn Bryn Common and overlooking the inlet and estuary.
(Jonathan Mullard)
ThemegalithictombknownasArthur'sStone,orMaenCeti,isdramaticallysituatedona'falsecrest'
on Cefn Bryn (Fig. 25). Both the English and Welsh names refer to the massive glacial erratic which
serves as a capstone and covers two chambers encircled by the remains of a round cairn. It is likely that
the tomb was constructed by excavating under the capstone and inserting the uprights beneath it. The
Welsh name isfirst mentioned inaTriad ofthe sixteenth century inwhich the raising ofthe stone islisted
as one of the 'three mighty achievements of the Isle of Britain'. The English name mentioned by Lhuyd
as being used 'by the common people' is probably of equal age and originates in the recurrent legend of a
pebble from a giant's shoe. In this version it was said to have been thrown from Llanelli by King Arthur.
As well as Arthur's Stone there is a remarkable concentration of standing stones in west Gower. Apart
from the eight that still survive, the best known of which is Samson's Jack, there are reliable records of
another single stone, a group of two or three and another group of four. In addition one of the existing
stones is linked with the name Stone Park, and two other menhirs, both named Long Stone, are known to
have existed. Some fourteen other field names also imply the presence of an upright stone.
THE DIVISION OF THE LANDSCAPE
The Bronze Age saw a return of a warmer and drier climate. The concentrations of barrows and cairns
on the ridge of Cefn Bryn and on Rhossili Down and Llanmadoc Hill suggests that these areas had been