Glan Ithon, including attached farm buildings

Cadw's description

Location

Approximately 2km NE of Llanyre, reached by drive on the SE side of a minor road between Llanyre and Crossgates.

History

A mid C19 farmhouse first shown on the 1889 Ordnance Survey. The farm has been occupied by the same family since it was built and is unaltered to an exceptional degree. The unaltered interiors of the house are a particularly rare survival, preserving invaluable evidence of early- to mid- C19 living patterns.

Exterior

A farmstead comprising an L-plan house of rubble stone to the S, a slightly lower brick and stone stable block attached on its N side, with a rubble-stone barn and cart house at R angles, forming a U-plan block around a cobbled yard.

The main front of the house faces S away from the yard. It has 2 storeys and 3 windows, beneath a slate roof with end stone stacks and projecting eaves. The central entrance has a Tuscan portico, panelled door and overlight. Windows are 3-light casements under tooled stone segmental heads. The L end is slate-hung, in which the gable end has a 3-light casement window on 2 levels. In the rear wing, a dairy window has a central glazed light flanked by iron meshes. Facing the yard, the rear of the main range has 3-light windows similar to the front. The 2-window rear wing has openings under cambered lintels imitating voussoirs. It has a boarded door and overlight to the back kitchen, with small window to the L and 3-light window to the R. An added blockwork lean-to is at the R end. In the upper storey are 2-light and 3-light windows

The stable and chaff room block has a brick elevation to the yard. At the L end is a segmental-headed passage doorway with boarded door. Further R are 2 boarded doors under overlights, each with a window to the L. The loft has a central loading door flanked by ventilation strips. The rear and R end of the stable block is rubble stone.

The barn has central large double threshing doors, with at ground level, boarded 'lifts' as a barrier to small animals entering the barn when the doors are open. There are 2 tiers of ventilation strips. The W gable end also has ventilation strips. The cart shed has a wide opening below a weatherboarded loft with window. In the E gable end are stone stairs up to the loft doorway. The N elevation of the barn is similar to the S. At the NW angle, between barn and stable, is the lean-to roof of a covered pig yard.

Interior

The interior of the house is unaltered to an exceptional degree, illustrating the living and working patterns in a mid C19 farm. The building retains all its doors, fireplaces, architraves and skirtings. The ground floor consists of front and back kitchens, parlour, larder/dairy where the butter was made, and a cellar for storage of dairy goods. Bedrooms are on the first floor.

The front (S) door leads to a passage with a C19 wooden stair. To the L is the parlour, where the fireplace is flanked by elliptical-headed recesses with cupboards beneath. To the R of the passage is the front kitchen, which has a chamfered beam, a large fireplace with wooden surround and mantel, and a floor of large square stone flags. The back kitchen has a chamfered ceiling beam and flagged floor. At the N end is a large fireplace with iron range with a wooden surround and mantel, incorporating a bread oven retaining its iron door, and a boiler. At the S end is a secondary wooden (servants’ ) stair with cupboard beneath. Between the back kitchen and parlour is a pantry/dairy with fitted wooden shelves, a window with shutters to iron meshes, and a stone flagged floor. A doorway beneath the passage stairs leads to a cellar with stone stair (beneath parlour), fitted slate slab, and a window. The rooms on the upper floor all retain original boarded doors, architraves and other woodwork.

The barn range has king post roof trusses of oak and pine, with diagonal struts from tie-beams down to walls. Each side of threshing floor are wooden platforms whose boarding facing threshing floor has small doors for sheep. The cart house has 2 re-used oak beams.

Reason for designation

Listed in a higher grade for its architectural interest as an exceptionally well-preserved mid C19 farmstead, with particularly unaltered interiors to the house, illustrating to a remarkable degree early and mid C19 rural living patterns.