Archæol. [Anglicized spelling of Welsh cist faen, i.e., cist chest, cist + faen (pron. vaen) aspirated form of maen stone.] = CIST 1.
1715. Pennecuik, Wks. (1815), 121 (E. D. D.). In trenching the ground for a garden, was discovered another tomb, kisti-vaen or stone coffin, of five flags, without an urn, or any remains of bones.
1807. G. Chalmers, Caledonia, I. I. ii. 84. Amidst the varieties, in the manner of burial,… the Cistvaen is remarkable.
1827. G. Higgins, Celtic Druids, 217. In the Welsh language called Kist-vaens, or stone-chests.
1842. Brande, Dict. Sci., Lit., etc. s.v., Cistvaens are commonly three stones placed on edge, like the three sides of a box, with a stone cover.
1881. Athenæum, No. 2826. 857/1. The great megalithic forms of interment, consisting of kistvaens, or sepulchral underground chambers, formed of four huge slabs, covered with an immense capstone.
