Ysguborwen

Cadw's description

Location

About 500m south west of the Church of St. Illtyd set beside and to the south of Persondy.

History

This barn is perhaps late C16 and a tithe-barn. It could be contemporary with Persondy (qv) or it could be a little later. It was converted to a house in 1993.

Exterior

This building is constructed of local sandstone rubble with some dressed quoins and has a Welsh slate roof. The west wall has two slit vents on either side of the cart entry, now infilled with modern glazing. Small hood on brackets above. Plain steep pitched roof with tall metal stove pipe. The east wall is similar with an additional window in the lower level to the left, only one vent each side. The north gable has a glazed taking-in door to the hayloft. The south gable is almost entirely covered by a modern single bay extension which has a casement window to each floor on the west wall and another in the gable end, the east wall is blind. The triangular vents mentioned by Fox and Raglan have mostly been hidden.

Interior

This is a five bay barn with four massive A-frame trusses, the outer ones of which are upper crucks with the principals coming well down into the wall. The principals are halved and pegged at the apex. Three tiers of purlins, some of which have been replaced. The secondary rafters and the roof covering date from 1993. The interior is otherwise filled with a modern structure and the threshing floor has gone.

Reason for designation

Included as a very good C17 barn which has been sensitively converted for domestic use and which has strong group value with the adjacent Persondy.