Argoed Farmhouse

Unit system farmstead group comprising C17 farmhouse, extended in alignment to N by a 4-bay threshing barn and linked to a C19 farmhouse to W by a storeyed vestibule. Built of random rubble masonry, the front of the C17 farmhouse limewashed. The C17 house and attached barn have roofs of small slates, rough stone copings at S gable; the top portion of the front wall of the old house was rebuilt in late C20 and the house re-roofed, the rear pitch has a modern slate roof with small rooflight. There is a rendered rectangular stack at S gable and a tall square stack at the NE corner; both have stone capping.

The C17 block is a 2-storey farmhouse, the doorway is offset to the R (N) with one window to R and 2 to L, the upper storey has 3 gable dormers offset to L (S). The windows are timber casements with slate sills.

The 4-bay threshing barn has been built in alignment to the N of the old house, the opposing doorways are offset to R (N) end and there are 2 narrow ventilation slits to L (S) and one to R (the northernmost ventilation slit in the rear elevation has been blocked). There is a pitching hole set in the N gable apex and a raking dormer opening breaks the eaves to R of the doorway to rear.

The C19 farmhouse is also built of random rubble masonry but has large stones as quoins and lintels. The roof was re-slated in C20 and has rooflights in the front (W) pitch, the rectangular gable stacks are clad with heavy grit render. Parallel to the old house, the C19 block is set at a slightly elevated position with the principal elevation facing W; a 3-window range with central doorway and modern top-hung casement windows with slate sills, the central 1st floor window partially blocked to make a smaller window.

The C17 house retains the original timbers including pegged collared trusses and large paired purlins. The ground floor retains some original cross beams with lambs tongue stops to soffit chamfers. There is a massive chamfered bressumer to the inglenook which has a brick oven in the corner and the cross passage retains post and panel partitioning.

The barn has a 4-bay roof with angle struts above the tie beams.

The interior of the C19 house was not inspected at the time of the survey.