Moriah Calvinistic Methodist Chapel including forecourt wall and gates

Moriah Calvinistic Methodist Chapel

This is an imposing, two-storey Classical style chapel dating from 1897, built for the Calvinistic Methodist community. The principal five-bay pedimented front faces west, flanked by shorter staircase and entrance bays, with the main body of the chapel set as a five-window range recessed behind the staircase bays. To the rear stands a three-window double-pile linking block connecting the chapel to a five-bay schoolroom set above the manse, positioned at right angles.

The entrance and staircase bays are faced with snecked rubble masonry with freestone dressings, whilst other elevations are pebbledashed with smooth-rendered dressings and stressed quoins at the angles. The chapel has a hipped slate roof, while the rear linking block and schoolroom have gabled roofs with rendered end stacks. Doors are twelve-panel, and windows comprise small-paned fixed lights to the front, with sliding sashes on other elevations.

The west-facing principal elevation is strongly symmetrical. The central three bays are slightly advanced beneath a triangular pediment and divided by pilasters—Tuscan on the ground floor, Corinthian on the first floor, with a plain entablature and moulded cornice. The ground floor features a central keyed oculus with coloured glass, flanked by paired round-headed lights with Tuscan pilaster jambs supporting moulded arches with keystones. The first floor has paired round-headed lights in each bay with Corinthian pilaster jambs and moulded arches; the corbelled sills support the windows. The triangular pediment is moulded and topped with an urn finial, enclosing a pedimented plaque with scrolled shoulders. The inscription reads: "1897 MORIAH" with "CAPEL COFFADWRIAETHOL / JOHN ELIAS / METHODISTIAID CALFINAIDD" beneath.

The flanking bays on each side are slightly recessed with rusticated angle pilasters, plain entablature, moulded cornice, and a balustraded parapet with urn finials on square piers at the angles. The first floor contains single round-headed windows with Tuscan pilaster jambs and moulded arches with keystones; ground floor windows are similarly detailed but with jambs supporting triangular pediments.

The lower flanking recessed staircase bays have angle quoins, plain entablature, moulded cornice, and matching parapet. The west elevation includes a keyed oculus with coloured window over a segmental corbelled pediment to a Tuscan doorway, with twelve-panel entrance doors set within. The side elevations to the staircase bays contain two tall round-headed stair windows with Tuscan pilaster jambs and moulded arches with keystones.

The side elevations to the main chapel feature round-headed first-floor windows and segmental-headed ground floor windows, each with smooth-rendered architraves and keystones; each floor has a continuous sill-band. The linking block has similarly detailed segmental-headed windows without sill bands, with stressed quoins at the angles. The schoolroom and manse have corresponding window treatments, with square-headed windows to the ground floor and round-headed windows to the schoolroom above.

The chapel stands within enclosed grounds, with rubble walls to the sides and rear. The front forecourt is bounded by spear-pointed iron railings on stone-capped snecked masonry bases, with similarly detailed gates positioned between large square rendered piers with moulded cornices and shaped caps.

Interior

The interior is finely and richly detailed. Entrances lead into small vestibules with gallery stairs; side doors open into the chapel beyond, with the set fawr (pulpit platform) positioned at the opposite east end. The ground floor contains three ranks of raking box pews—central with a divider, side pews curving. The gallery comprises banks of raking pews following the gallery shape, which sweeps around three sides of the rectangular chapel and continues as an organ gallery behind the set fawr at the east end.

The set fawr is rectangular with curving angles and side entrances, its rectangular front advanced. The facing panels are recessed with moulded surrounds; the upper part displays carved inset floriate panels beneath a moulded rail with dentilled frieze. The pulpit is rectangular with bays advanced in steps to the front, raised by five steps. The side entrance stairs feature fluted balusters and newel posts with square capitals decorated with floriate carving, surmounted by carved banded globe finials. The balusters are linked by an arched frieze decorated with floriate bosses, beneath a moulded rail. The pulpit front comprises two stages, each with a dentilled frieze under a moulded cornice. The lower stage has recessed panels with moulded surrounds; the lower panels of the upper stage have shaped heads inset with carved floriate designs. The angles of the upper stage are flanked by engaged Corinthian columns.

The wall to the rear of the set fawr and pulpit is panelled and continues upwards to the panelled front of the organ casing. The gallery front is also panelled, with long rectangular recessed panels interspersed with carved floriate panels flanked by fluted Corinthian pilasters. The upper part features a floriate panelled frieze beneath a dentilled moulded rail. The gallery is supported on tapering, fluted cast-iron Corinthian piers with floriate brackets.

The chapel walls are plastered with panelling to the lower part of the ground floor and gallery, with beading between panels set beneath an arched frieze and moulded dado. Gallery windows have moulded arches on floriate corbels. The upper walls feature a dentilled moulded cornice rising to a coved ceiling. The ceiling is surrounded by timber with diagonally set tongued and grooved panelling interspersed with decorative pierced ventilation grilles. At either end of the chapel are pairs of recessed panels separated by moulded ribs, each containing a circular decorative wooden ventilation grille with an ornate floriate plaster relief surround. The central ceiling panel is square with a decorative wooden ventilation grille and a highly ornate plaster relief surround; the inner part features radiating spoked ribs with floriate decoration between the panels, whilst the outer part displays large circular floriate bosses.

A marble memorial slab to John Elias (died 1841), moved from Capel Dinas in 1898, is positioned on the wall to the right of the set fawr.

A doorway to the right of the set fawr opens into adjacent rooms, some containing original decorative cast-iron fireplaces and doors with chamfered angles. The schoolroom features a tongued and grooved ceiling with four decorative pierced ventilation grilles down its centre, and walls with tongued and grooved panelling to the lower part.