Persondy, Mamhilad

Persondy (the Priest's House), Mamhilad, Monmouthshire is a former parsonage dating from the late 16th century. It is a Grade II* listed building. The adjacent barn, now a separate residence called Ysguborwen, has its own Grade II listing.

Persondy
"A completely preserved demonstration of 16th century joy in oaken capentry"
TypeHouse
LocationMamhilad, Monmouthshire
Coordinates51.7234°N 3.0133°W / 51.7234; -3.0133
Builtlate 16th century
Architectural style(s)Vernacular
Governing bodyPrivately owned
Listed Building – Grade II*
Official name: Persondy
Designated4 March 1952
Reference no.2619
Listed Building – Grade II
Official name: Ysguborwen
Designated18 November 1980
Reference no.2620
Location of Persondy in Monmouthshire

History and description

The house dates from the late 16th century and is constructed to a two-cell plan.[1] It was built as the parsonage to the parish Church of St Illtyd.[2] It is largely unaltered since its construction, with the exception of the addition of a veranda to the south and east sides in the 1940s.[1] It is built of Old red sandstone which has been white rendered, an alteration which the architectural historian John Newman, writing in his Gwent/Monmouthshire Pevsner, considers "unattractiv[e]".[3] Aside from its unaltered state, the notable feature of Persondy is its "extraordinarily rich"[2] interior joinery, which Newman dscribes as a "joy in oaken carpentry".[1] David Barnes, in his Companion Guide to Wales, calls the interior "a remarkable survival",[4] and Peter Smith notes the unexpectedly "fine work [to be] found in [this] small, two-unit, house".[lower-alpha 1][6]

The adjacent barn was converted to residential use in 1993 and has its own Grade II listing.[7] Coflein considers that the barn may originally have functioned as a tithe barn to the parsonage,[8] following a suggestion first made by Sir Cyril Fox and Lord Raglan in Sub-Medieval Houses, c. 1550–1610, the second volume of their multi-volume study, Monmouthshire Houses.[9]

Notes
  1. In his survey of Welsh vernacular architecture, Houses of the Welsh Countryside, Peter Smith also produced a cut-through illustration of Persondy showing its simple, two-cell plan.[5]

References
  1. Newman 2000, pp. 378–379.
  2. Cadw. "Persondy  (Grade II*) (2619)". National Historic Assets of Wales. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  3. Newman 2000, p. 379.
  4. Barnes 2005, p. 129.
  5. Smith 1975, p. 200.
  6. Smith 1975, pp. 164–165.
  7. Cadw. "Ysguborwen  (Grade II) (2620)". National Historic Assets of Wales. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  8. "Persondy, Glebe Farm". coflein.gov.uk. Coflein. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  9. Fox & Raglan 1994, p. 79.

Sources
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.