Plas Mawr (formerly known as Cwrt y Ceidrim)

Cadw's description

Location

On sloping sight in Loughor valley, 1 mile (1.69km) S of Ty Croes, approached off the minor road along a track which continues past Plas Uchaf.

History

An important earlier C17 gentry house, home of thePenrys from the C16. Linear three-unit plan with lateral fireplace. Accommodation comprises: on the ground floor, kitchen, store room, and servants' hall; on the first floor parlour, great hall, and bed chamber; and further bed chambers in the attic. The house was extensively altered in the late C17 when the mullion windows were replaced by vertically sliding sashes and the first-floor hall transformed into a fashionable Georgian saloon. Later, probably in the early C19, a crosswing was added to the the NW end. The house has been unoccupied since 1954.

Exterior

Colourwashed rubble stone, slate roof with red tile ridge. S elevation: gable wing to left has stone voissoured window opening at ground level, then outshut with external stone stair. Wall of main house to right has remains of collapsed lateral stone stack, then ground-floor door opening, and, on first floor, tall unglazed window opening with fragment of stone reserve-chamfer mullion lodged in wall to left. N side (left to right): gable stack, two-storey staircase projection, then three tall window openings on the first floor with three smaller ones below (not in line), finally gable end. W front: gable of C17 house in centre breaks forward slightly, with wings either side and end stacks, creating approximately balanced façade. Centre gable has chimney breast projecting from upper wall on three rounded corbels, with small window opening to left. Wings have tall openings on ground floor and smaller square openings above; remains of late C19 sash window, ground-floor right, has marginal side lights.

Interior

Eight bays. Ground floor: first 4 bays have double roll mouldings on the beams, and joists with moulded soffits - three flutes along each side. Kitchen; big gable fireplace with oak lintel (opening 2.6m wide, 1.3m deep), entrance door on S wall, with staircase in recess in N wall opposite. Doorway in wooden partition opens into adjoining Store Room; enclosed lobby on S side with wooden semi-circular door head leads to attached cellar/pantry. Servants' Hall has plain beams. First floor: Parlour ; two curved stone corbels support wooden fireplace lintel which has a quadruple roll mould running along the bottom of face, ceiling beams have double roll and fluted joists, spiral stone attic stair to left of fireplace, partition opposite has two doors leading to upper Hall which has moulded dado rail; and plain beams with socket holes to carry C18 plaster ceiling (now collapsed). Elegant Georgian cupboard on W wall has semi-circular back and delicately curved shelf fronts and reeded pilasters with panneled bases either side. Part of left jamb of the fine C17 stone fireplace survives and has narrow, moulded side panels and is rounded at the corner. Doorway to right of cupboard leads to Bed Chamber. Cupboard bed, formerly beside stair, now removed, but remains of stair survive.Ceiling beams have double rolls and fluted joists. Attic Original roof replaced in late C19 or early C20. Interior detail of the wings destroyed by structural collapse.

Reason for designation

A Welsh C17 gentry house of major vernacular importance which, although fallen into disrepair, still retains architectural features of outstanding interest.