| Plas Uchaf | |
|---|---|
| Landmark Plas Uchaf south side.JPG | |
| General information | |
| Town or city | Corwen |
| Country | Wales |
| Coordinates | |
| Completed | 15th century |
Plas Uchaf (English: Upper Hall) is a 15th century cruck-and-aisle-truss hall house, 1.5 miles (2.4 km) south-west of Corwen, Denbighshire, Wales and 1 mile (1.6 km) north of Cynwyd. Its excellent workmanship indicates a house originally of considerable importance; it has been described as "of palatial significance".[1]
Contents |
The house consists of a long rectangle divided by a cross passage. The west end is a large hall some 25 feet (7.6 m) high.[2] The east end consists of smaller rooms on two floors.
The roof structure is substantial, of paired cruck beams with additional horizontal, vertical and diagonal bracing.[3] One unusual feature is that the truss between the cross-passage and hall is an aisle truss, a form normally only found in much larger buildings such as barns and churches. This suggests the use of English craftsmen[2] and is an indication of the status of the original inhabitants.[4]
The walls are of stone rubble[2] but were originally half-timbered.[5]
The early history of the building is not documented. The original construction was thought to date from the late 14th or early 15th century,[2] but part of the structure has been dated to 1435 by tree-ring dating.[5] This is thought to be consistent with its use as the seat of the barons of Cymmer-yn-Edeirnion.[6]
In the 16th century the hall was divided horizontally by the addition of an inserted floor supported by moulded cross beams.[2]
The house was listed as a house of the gentry as late as 1707[7] but was later split into two or three labourers' cottages.[2][8] The house was occupied until at least 1933,[2] but by 1964 the inserted floor and panelling had been removed, the building had been abandoned and was falling into ruin.[3]
Peter Smith and Ffrangcon Lloyd drew attention to the building in 1964,[3] and it was listed grade II[5] and eventually taken on and restored by the Landmark Trust. The building is now maintained using income from its use as holiday accommodation.[9]