At 11ft tall and carved with Celtic designs, Maen Chwyfan is one of Flintshire's most impressive ancient monuments.
It is an early medieval stone cross and stands by a crossroads in the parish of Whitford, near Holywell, possibly marking the site where an early Welsh saint, Chwyfan, preached to the populace.
The nearby church at Dyserth is dedicated to Saint Chwyfan. Legend has it Maen Chwyfan also marks the site of a fabulous treasure, hidden somewhere beneath it.
Fortunately, the monument has survived the attentions of would-be treasure seekers over the centuries because (according to legend, needless to say) it has the ability to defend itself - by zapping people with lightning bolts!
"The country people fancied it covered some treasure and now and again tried to undermine it," states an account of 1879. However, they were always thwarted in their designs "by a sudden storm of thunder and lightning".
Even as late as the year 1900 attempts were being made to find the treasure, according to a correspondent to the Cheshire Sheaf magazine, who wrote: "Three or four successive attempts were made by some monks to see what the stone covered.
"And on each occasion the attempt had to be given up by reason of the lightning. The singular part of the matter is that days were chosen when lightning would be least, but all to no avail."
Where these greedy monks came from, he does not say (surely not from nearby Pantasaph?) But I wonder what they hoped to find?
Incidentally, modern day treasure hunters should know that despite its flashy defensive mechanism, Maen Chwyfan has been thoroughly investigated by archaeologists - nothing was found beneath it to a depth of eight feet. 
Reference Cheshire Sheaf, August 1912; Royal Commission Inventory of Ancient Monuments
your comments
Christoph, Cheshire
Not so deep guys. I am well informed that the treasure may be found just at the foot of the cross. :)
Tue Mar 25 11:00:25 2008
Mark Hughes 5 miles away
LOL, I'll have to find that bucket and spade the kids use at Rhyl & Talacre. 8ft indeed, love the part about WOULD BE treasure hunters, many of those in N. Wales.
Mon Dec 18 10:16:56 2006
R.Drake USA
Eight feet seems a bit shallow, considering the monument is 11 feet tall they certainly weren't being modest. I am a strong believer of the power of the Celts and other ancient cultures. The Celts, I believe, were very in-tune with the forces of nature - I don't doubt the possibility of this "lightning security."
Wed Sep 13 08:29:50 2006
Buddy, USA
Heh, Mary is right. Heck, I believe in paranormal whatnot, and treasure like this should be a good 150 feet into the earth's crust.
Fri Aug 11 07:58:43 2006
Maryam Abdulkarim Halliru (nigerian)
I don't think eight feet is really deep enough. Every legend has a root or maybe even an ounce of truth, so there might actually be some thing buried there and the Lightning Story was made up to scare away people.
Mon May 15 07:59:05 2006
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