Bryn

Cadw's description

Location

Located immediately to the S of St. Illtyd's parish church andabutting its churchyard revetment wall; accessed via tracks to therear of the church, leading from the A 470.

History

Bryn was a 3-bay open cruck hall, mid C16 or earlier, which was enlarged to form a T-plan in the earlier C18; subsequently altered and extended to a cross plan, the house nowforms 2 independent domestic units. Known formerly as 'yr hen dafarn', the house was used as an inn certainly in the C19 and probably earlier.

Exterior

Single-storey primary range (N-S) with one and a half storey E-W cross-range; rubble construction, rough-cast to all W faces. Slate roofs, that to the primary block steeply pitched; end chimneys with plain capping and weathercoursing. Tynllan, forming the E-facing section has a modern part-glazed door to the early range with a C19 4-pane casement to the L and a further, blocked window beyond. 9-pane fixed window to the ground floor of the E-W range with hipped dormer above containing a 4-pane casement. Adjoining the E gable, stepped-down and set-back, a later rubble gabled outhouse with slate roof. Boarded door to R with small plain-glazed window to L. Bryn, facing predominantly W, has two 6-pane casement windows to the ground floor of the cross-wing gable with two 4-pane casements above. Boarded door to the L of the primary range with a further, near-central entrance beyond with run-off-stopped pine doorcase; flanking windows, 4-pane to the L and 6-pane to the R. Catslide dormer with 4-pane sash to recessed addition to L; 6-pane fixed window beneath.

Interior

The primary range of Bryn has its 2 cruck pairs visiblewith smoke-blackening apparent; pegged collars and purlins. Beneath the southern-most bay of this, in a rubble basement on the down-hill side, a fine probably mid-or third-quarter C16 ceiling with central cross beams and well-scantled joists, all with wide chamfers and broach stops. Boarded door and blocked window to R;formerly stepped access from above.

Reason for designation

An early vernacular building with interesting historical associations.

Group value with St. Illtyd's church and churchyard walls.