Cefn Bryntalch Hall

Cefn Bryntalch Hall

Cefn Bryntalch Hall is a two-storey house with attics and cellar, constructed of red brick under tile roofs. It displays five tall red brick chimney stacks arranged asymmetrically, each with four or six diagonally set shafts. The design skilfully fuses vernacular vocabulary with elements of early Georgian revival to create a harmonious composition. The plan is arranged around a central stair hall, with the three-bay garden front facing south, the entrance front to the east, and a west wing projecting towards the rear to the north.

The Garden Front

The garden front is the most formally 18th-century in its detailing, presenting an overall symmetrical arrangement controlled by balanced asymmetry. Three bays are articulated by a range of attic gables. Two-storey canted bay windows at the outer ends, with chamfered angles, contain painted eight-pane flush-framed sash windows on each floor and moulded string courses. The lower string course continues across the elevation and returns to the east and west. Between these advanced bays stands a central doorway—a narrow glazed door with integral overlight set beneath a small bracketed canopy. This is flanked by an asymmetrical arrangement of small-paned windows, while symmetry is reasserted by a Palladian window at first-floor level above the doorway, with flanking small-paned casements. Casement windows of two and three lights occupy the attic above a deeply marked string course.

The Entrance Front

The three-bay entrance front demonstrates an imaginative combination of Georgian revival and vernacular styles, blending a partially timber-framed storeyed porch with classical Georgian symmetry and brickwork detail. A narrow projecting three-storey gabled porch is centrally placed. Its upper storey is timber-framed with diagonal struts and surmounted by a bell tower. The brick lower storeys are articulated by angle pilasters, with a triangular pediment above the round-arched entrance and a segmentally arched pediment clasped between the pilasters above the first-floor window. Immediately below the hoodmould is a sandstone shield displaying a date of 1869. On the south side of the porch at first-floor level is an oval window with quadrant stays. Curved stone steps rise to the front entrance. The panelled half-glazed front door has a round-arched top within a moulded wooden frame with a central keystone. The parapet, string course, and brick plinth continue across the range from the garden front. The outer bays have narrow sash windows as on the garden front, generally of eight panes set flush with their moulded frames. Three attic gables set back from the parapet contain three-light casements with diamond glazing.

The West Elevation

The west elevation presents an informal composition exploring the potential of brick domestic revival architecture to create a highly expressive, picturesque grouping. At the south end, the parapet and dripmould continue from the garden front, with a pair of eight-pane sashes to the dining room and two widely spaced six-pane casements above. Beyond stands an asymmetrical gable anchored by a large eaves stack with three diagonally set brick shafts on its south side. The main range roof is hipped to the north, with a short cross wing featuring a partially tile-hung gable end projecting from this. The main range continues beyond a further large stack with grouped shafts, at a lower level, with a catslide roof extending almost to the ground. Windows are three-, four-, or five-light transomed casements under brick-arched heads with diamond quarries. Floor levels in the servants' quarters are lower than in the main part of the house.

The Rear and Courtyard

To the rear, a small courtyard is formed between the advanced east and west wings. Set back in the centre is the rear of the stair hall, with a Palladian window offset at first-floor level, aligned with the similar window on the garden front. At ground level is a three-light transomed casement with square leaded lights and a wood-planked door under a segmental arched head. A rendered gablet set back behind the parapet contains a five-light window with diamond quarries. The west range, containing servants' quarters, extends further than the east range. Its west side has a catslide roof, while the east side is two storeys and attic with transomed casement windows containing small quarries under segmental brick arches. One window has been altered to form a doorway. The gable end has a modern door to the west side, a four-pane casement under a relieving arch in the attic, and a ground-floor window as elsewhere. The east range has a central gable stack. To its east, the parapet and dripmould finish approximately 0.5 metres from the north-east angle, while small windows are positioned west of the stack.

Interior

The interior is consistently neo-Georgian in style and detail. The main east door leads into a small entrance hall. The interior is dominated by a central stair hall and an imperial staircase rising to a galleried landing with raised ceiling above. The main reception rooms and bedrooms are located along the garden front at ground and first-floor levels respectively. On the ground floor, three reception rooms are entered from an open corridor; the door to the central room is located centrally to the stair and has a scrolled pediment. Opposite, at the top of the first flight of stairs, the Palladian window is set within a recessed arch. The dining room is at the west end, with its door facing east towards the entrance.

Supporting the upper flights of stairs are two arcades aligned north-south, with square panelled piers bearing mouldings, each supporting two basket arches. The hall has a roughly triangular plan, with the apex formed by the staircase, which has recessed openings to each side. The staircase features turned balusters—two per tread—with newel posts made up of four turned balusters. The hand rail has cavetto mouldings. Three front bedrooms are accessed from the galleried, balustraded landing, each with a dressing or wash room.

The service area is located in the west wing and attic and is large in proportion to the rest of the house. Access at all levels connects the service and main areas. Attic rooms are entered from a U-shaped corridor following the external plan of the ranges. Dry and damp cellars are located beneath the house. The dry cellars are subdivided and include wine cellars, all accessed via openings with brick-arched heads.

Joinery throughout the house is consistently detailed, including 18th-century-style panelled doors with moulded architraves, some with round-arched heads. Panelling below dado level covers most rooms, except the south side of the hall where it continues to picture rail level. Moulded cornices appear throughout, with panelled recesses and shutters to the windows.