Garden Walls and Well House at Bachymbyd Fawr

Cadw's description

Location

Located immediately to the SE of Bachymbyd Fawr.

History

Formal garden walls with contemporary projecting well house/gazebo. These represent the surviving components of a new garden laid out c1666 by Charles Salesbury to complement the new house of Bachymbyd Fawr, which he completed in that year. The well house structure houses a natural spring in its lower section, and has a gazebo or garden house occupying its upper section.

Exterior

C17 garden walls with incorporated well house-cum-gazebo. The walls are of local limestone rubble with rubble coping above a rough stringcourse. They commence at the SE approach to the house and adjoin a later rubble gate pier. The first stretch runs NE from the pier for some 15m in 3 stepped-down sections from a height of approximately 3m to 1.7m; various small slits with inner splays punctuate this stretch. At this point the wall turns a near right-angle to continue north-westwards. The first section has been incorporated as the rear wall of a small C20 garden cottage. A few metres to the L of this is the associated well house. The wall on this side also serves as a revetment, the garden side reaching a maximum height of 1.5m, whilst the lower side has a height of approximately 4m. Beyond the well house the wall continues for a further 15m and contains 7 equally-spaced (contemporary) bee garth niches along its length. At the end it turns another right-angle to continue at the same height for a further 7m where it breaks down and terminates; there are 2 similar niches along this stretch.

The well house is in the form of a 2-storey square projecting tower, the upper storey of which is accessed from the garden. The tower has a lower stage of limestone rubble construction and an upper section of squared and coursed brown sandstone blocks, with limestone rubble rear wall. The roof is pitched and has coped and kneelered gable parapets to the front and rear. Triangular-headed arch to the front face of the lower stage, part-boarded and with long rough-dressed voussoirs; this is the outlet from a natural spring housed within the structure. The upper stage has an ocular light to each of its outer sides, with a further oculus in the front gable apex; all have moulded and returned labels and those facing the front retain iron bird bars. The rear (garden) side has a shouldered, Tudor-arched entrance of brown sandstone, with a square open light above.

Interior

Original roof structure to the well house, with 2 tiers of purlins. The walls retain their original lime-hair plastered walls and have yellow ochre limewash layers, the earliest of which appears to be primary. Modern boarded floor.

Reason for designation

Listed for its special interest as a fine sequence of revetted C17 garden walling with a scarce and well-preserved example of a contemporary well-house.

Group value with Bachymbyd Fawr.