Upper Tal-y-fan

Cadw's description

Location

About 1.8km SSW of the church of St Dingat, on the E side of a farmtrack running off the old road between Mitchel troy and Raglan where it bends under the A40(T).

History

A late-medieval cruck-framed house, probably originally entirely open to the roof and heated by a central hearth; remodelled by heightening of the walls in stone, and insertion of chimneys and upper floors in several phases. Subsequently enlarged by the addition of a 2-storey bay at one end. Renovated in late C20, with some small additions.

Exterior

A farmhouse of basically linear single-depth plan on a N-S axis, with white-painted rubble walls, blue slate roofs and red brick chimneys, in which only the irregularity of its west front now gives some indication of its historical character. This front consists of 2 principal elements: a relatively-tall single-storey 3-bay main range, and a 2-storey single-bay windowless outbuilding. An added (or remodelled) lean-to under a catslide roof (now a sun-lounge) is attached to the S end of the facade, covering the entrance doorway and a modernised window, but to the left of this are 2 low-set oblong 3-light windows with thin wooden lintels and renewed glazing (lighting the centre and N bays respectively), and at a higher level further left is a small square window with a similar lintel (lighting a mural staircase in the NW corner). There is a small square chimney on each gable of this range. By contrast with the front, the rear of this range is 2-storeyed. A modern part-glazed lean-to now covers the centre and part of the N bay up to sill-level of the upper floor. To the left of this is a small 2-light window to the S bay, and at 1st floor are three 3-light casements; all these windows with renewed glazing.
At the N end, in the angle between the N gable and the rear of the 2-storey outbuilding is a stone-built lean-to which projects and has a plain doorway to the left and a 1-light window to the right.

Interior

The main range has a 3-cell plan with a heated room at each end and a wooden-panelled former dairy between them. The S bay (which Fox and Raglan believed to be the ceiled first) has 4 lateral beams with stopped cavetto moulding and chamfered joists with unusual diagonal, or semi-broach, stops. Immediately behind the S beam is a stone chimney breast containing a very large fireplace with chamfered surround and an enormous arched monolith lintel. (To the left is a recess which might originally have contained a spiral staircase.) The former dairy in the centre is enclosed by post-and-panel partitioning, has a chamfered lateral beam and chamfered joist with triangle stops. The N bay, which has similar chamfered beams and joists, has at its N end a large rectangular fireplace with chamfered jambs and monolith lintel; a spiral stone staircase to its left; and a section of muntin-and-rail panelling to the right, with 3 diminishing tiers of panels (the topmost with small inlay decoration), and a board door. At 1st floor part of one cruck truss is exposed, with studwork infill.

Reason for designation

Included as a house of late-medieval origins retaining a remakably intact interior.