Wenallt-Uchaf

Cadw's description

Location

The house stands high on the Wenallt at the top of a long track, partly private, overlooking a valley.

History

Upper Wenallt is built along the contours and is of Smith plan-type B, with a cross-passage behind the chimney. But this may not always have been so since the walls were probably originally timber-framed and the chimney has been inserted. It is a four-bay house built of plain full crucks, the E pair (at the 'upper' end) missing. The two-bay hall and the other rooms have smoke-blackened roof timbers. The 'upper' bay seems to have been partitioned off at both levels, although the floor (now largely missing) looks inserted and is supported on a later post. The hall chimney and the door from the cross-passage were inserted in the second half of the 16th century together with the stairs, which may initially have served only the 'lower' end chamber. The hall ceiling is differently detailed and was inserted in the 17th century. The outer walls were rebuilt in stone perhaps in the 17th or 18th century but much rebuilt in the 19th, raising the eaves at the front but not the back. P Smith refers to a post & panel partition here and an ornate doorhead, no longer present (pp 492, 505).

Exterior

Stone, 1 storey with attics, stone slate roof, Welsh to rear. SW, brick arches to door & casement windows, modern dormer windows & door, the W stonework & return onto W end rebuilt. Central stone chimney. NW end, wide window with deep stone lintel, upper window modern casements & old timber lintel. NE, blocked door opposite front door, now small window, 1 of 2. SE end, gable window modern casements & old timber lintel.

Interior

Hall, wide door by chimney, frame pyramidal stop-chamfers all members, as on chimney's deep bressummer; spur on front cruck; inner partition timber-framed, wide panels 2 high, formerly wattle & daub; longitudinal ceiling beams; window-seat old, stone back & thick wooden seat; stone stairs by chimney, modern craftsman's oak door at base. Inner room, site of modern staircase, stone floor, ceiling plain joists lodged on plain beams, mostly missing, supported 3-way C16/17 jowled post by partition. Left of hall, modern partitions; near crucks, cross-beam with soffit-mortices for partition.

1st floor, partitions & doors mostly modern. Crucks exposed mainly at this level including 4th pair embedded in NW end wall, collars halved across. Rear pitch: some curved windbraces to both tiers purlins, purlins all original. E-most truss over hall partition has stud below collar, was closed, wattle & daub.

Reason for designation

The house is a fine late mediaeval one, cruck-built, and retains many interesting
original or early features.