A cist (or /ˈsɪst/) or kist (/ˈkɪst/) is a small stone-built coffin-like box or ossuary used to hold the bodies of the dead. Examples can be found all over the world. A cist may have been associated with other monuments, perhaps under a cairn or long barrow. It would not be uncommon to find several cists close together within the same cairn or barrow. Occasionally, ornaments have been found within a cist under excavation, which could indicate the wealth of the interred individual.

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