Capel Cana and school rooms

Cadw's description

Location

Located on the NW side of the road leading out of the village towards Brynsiencyn, c150m SW of the Parish Church of St. Deiniol, set within grounds bounded by a low rubble masonry wall and railings and entered through wrought iron gates.

History

Independent chapel. A slate plaque fixed on the schoolroom wall reads: CANA / ADEILADWYD 1825 / HELAETHWY 1855 / AILADEILADWYD 1862, which suggests that the original chapel was built in 1825, was extended in 1855 and rebuilt in 1862; it also bears the names of the architect of the 1862 rebuilding, T Thomas and the builder, J Pritchard. The name and date on the front of the chapel reads: CANA 1906, the date when the chapel was extended and the Renaissance style entrance erected.

Exterior

Simple Classical chapel with Renaissance enrichment to entrance front. Single storey, 3 bays. Pebble-dash over stone, with cement dressings and a shallow pitched slate roof with tiled cresting. A school room is set at right angles at the rear of the building with outbuildings added to the NW end. NE gable entrance added 1906, articulated by angle quoins and expressed as 2 storeys. Entrances to either side of advanced central bay, which, at first floor level, forms an aedicule with fluted pilasters to a Palladian window which has Tuscan pilasters and moulded cornice; incised lettering over, reading CANA 1906. Oculi in moulded architraves in flanking bays above the entrances. Lower storey has entrances in Tuscan architraves to either side, and engaged arcade in centre-piece. Each return has recessed 6-pane lights with segmental heads, upper storey with hoodmould; each bay of the main part of the chapel with tall round headed windows of 12-pane sashes under a 3-pane fixed light, each with hood moulds. School rooms to the rear of similar build, 3 bays with square-headed sash windows set into segmental-headed surrounds.

Interior

Entrances lead into small vestibules, each with panelled doors leading to main chapel with set fawr at opposite end. Raking pews, set fawr and pulpit of pitch pine. Set fawr raised by one step with panelling to lower part, balustraded with turned balusters and moulded rails, side entrances with turned newels; pulpit of 3 bays with central bay advanced, panelled to lower part with decorated panels in upper part, dentilled cornice and balustered as for set fawr, raised by 3 circular stairs. Wide, semi-circular headed recess behind set fawr formed by engaged composite piers supporting a moulded arch with scrolled acanthus leaf keystone; with panels of stylized foliage in relief below and to each side of the arch, trailed floriate frieze above under a moulded corbelled cornice. Walls are plastered, with tongued and grooved panelling to lower part; coved ceiling of plastered panels, entrance vestibules with shaped parapets. Schoolrooms have original bench seats and panelled reading desk at left end, panelled doors and walls with tongued and grooved panelling to lower half.

Reason for designation

Listed as well-preserved C19 chapel, built to an ambitious scale for a small rural area and with bold remodelling to the entrance in the early part of C20, also retaining many features and fittings dating to the 1862 rebuilding, especially the fine decorative plasterwork.