Church of St Mary

Cadw's description

Location

In a walled churchyard in the centre of the village.

History

Gwaenysgor church was described as ruinous in Domesday and is sited within a rounded churchyard, an indication of early foundation. The present church is late C12 or early C13, with Tudor remodelling. The porch was added in the C17. The church was restored by Harold Hughes in 1931, who exposed the medieval arched-brace roof that had been concealed during restoration in 1892.

Exterior

A simple Perpendicular style church comprising nave and chancel under a single roof, and S porch, of rubble stone with bigger quoins and slate roof behind coped gables. A gabled W bellcote has a single bell. The lower gabled porch is set back from the W end of the nave and its S wall is battered at the base. It has a round-headed doorway with thin voussoirs, and a boarded door with vertical ribs. The nave has a 3-light square headed window, renewed in the early C20, with cusped lights. The chancel has a similar but mainly original C16 2-light window with cusped lights and sunk spandrels. The 3-light Perpendicular E window has a hood mould and renewed mullions. The N wall of the chancel has a narrow window in dressed stone surround, while the nave has a square-headed 2-light window with depressed heads and sunk spandrels, probably C17 but with mullion, jamb and sill replaced early C20. At the W end is a pointed doorway, probably medieval but subsequently blocked and only revealed in 1931, which has subsequently been converted to a window.

Interior

The porch has a tunnel vault. The round-headed nave S doorway is possibly C12 and was narrowed by the insertion of a wooden door frame, probably when the porch was built in the C17, comprising wooden uprights and a triangular head decorated with incised floral symbols, crosses and a peacock. This had been concealed in 1892 but was exposed and left free-standing, to reveal detail of the original doorway, in 1931. The nave and chancel are undivided and have a C15 roof of closely spaced arched braces, partly renewed. The Early English C13 font, modelled on the Lincoln Cathedral font, has a square bowl enriched by foliage with intertwined stems in low relief, with a central round pedestal and renewed angle shafts, standing on a square base.

The pulpit and seats are plain. The sanctuary retains a Laudian altar table, which has turned legs and is dated '1637' in low relief to the front. Attached to the N wall of the chancel is an early C14 incised slab bearing a cross and sword, and next to it a small cross in a roundel, also early medieval. Fragments of other cross slabs are incorporated into the window sills. The nave N wall has a simple polished marble tablet to Walter Jones (d.1873) of Ty Isaf and members of his family. In the W wall is a simple round-headed tablet commemorating Sarah Wynne (d.1799) probably ex situ and originally a grave marker.

Reason for designation

Listed grade II* as a simple medieval village church retaining early character, including a fine medieval roof, with other notable medieval and C17 interior features.