Church of Saint David

Church of Saint David

A church of whitewashed rubble stone with slate roofs, shouldered coped gables and cross finials. It consists of a nave, short chancel and west bellcote, with a west porch added in 1932.

The exterior is in classical style. The nave has three bays divided by pilasters with plinths and simple moulded capitals under the eaves. Each side has three long narrow arched windows with stone voussoirs to the arches. The west end has two similar blank arched recesses with slate sills, centred between a 1932 porch and a projecting centre section of the west wall that carries the bellcote. The bellcote has two string courses beneath it and an arched bell-opening with impost bands each side, flanked by outer pilasters carrying a frieze and pediment.

The porch has a shallow pitched roof with open pedimental front gable in moulded ashlar, the ashlar continued along the side wall. It features raised angle piers and raised stone voussoirs following the sloping lines of the pediment over a flat-headed doorway with stone voussoirs and triple keystone. The recessed oak double plank doors have cover strips and iron nailheads. The side walls of the porch have a sunk panel with stone voussoirs under the eaves and a small arched window with stone voussoirs, keystone and ashlar sill.

The side windows have early 20th-century ashlar 2-light windows inserted into the original openings, with arched heads to the lights, rusticated jambs, and no sills. On the east return of the south wall of the nave is a 1932 oak door to the vestry under a concrete moulded hood on console brackets. The very short chancel has a lower roof and similar angle pilasters. Its big arched east window has stone voussoirs and shows a line of the original sill from the original window; it was replaced with an early 20th-century ashlar 4-light window with Y-tracery, paired arched lights and two roundels.

Interior

The interior has plastered whitewashed walls, panelled 3-sided, with a 6-bay nave roof with plaster panels. The west end has a cambered headed doorway with double leather-covered doors. The porch has a slate flagged floor. The original nave extends beyond the present screen. The shallow chancel has a round arch, hollow-moulded, flanked by pilasters with an inner round arch. One step leads to the chancel, which has a curved plastered panel ceiling of 2 by 8 panels with moulded timbers. Parquet floors are laid with slate flags under the screen.

A late 19th-century Bath stone octagonal font stands on four column shafts with leaf-capitals and shields. The font cover dates to 1933. The 19th-century pine pews have panelled backs.

The finest feature is a fine oak screen of nine bays, the wider one to the left containing a pulpit, and the widest in the centre forming the main opening. The screen is in a 16th to 17th-century classical style with square piers to the openings over a panelled base with moulded plinth. The flat entablature has triglyphs over pilasters and the centre of each wider bay, with a moulded cornice. The piers have scrolls each side of the capitals under the entablature and stand on raised pedestals with arched panels. The pulpit front projecting in the left bay is 3-sided and panelled. The last two bays on the right have openings partially filled by the panelled end of the vestry, in the south-east corner of the original nave. The vestry's north front has five panelled bays and a 2-panel door to the left, and a cornice with incised decoration to the frieze. The stalls have scrolls to the tops of bench ends, open panelled backs with little panelled piers and scrolls. The frontal also has pilasters and panels and scrolled ends. A reading desk is attached, with a front panel between half-fluted pilasters and scrolled support. Behind the north stalls is access to oak steps to the pulpit. Kneelers in the chancel arch have scrolls under the top rail, splayed out ends and pilasters on the inner ends. A panelled dado runs along the chancel, and there is a curtained reredos with double-ogee moulding to the piers, curved tops to the capitals and a centre top rail above the curtain with delicate pierced cresting. Side curtains hang on wrought iron swing brackets. Two Gothic oak sanctuary chairs are present.

In the vestry is an earlier 19th-century seating plan painted on board. An oak north end exterior door provides access.

The east window dates to circa 1925 and was given in memory of Major J.J. Bonsall of Fronfraith; it depicts the Lamb of God, Saints Mary and John, and the Light of the World. One north 2-light window commemorates E. Williams, who died in 1958, and was made by Powell of Whitefriars; it shows The Lord is my Shepherd.

A marble neo-Grec memorial plaque with a dove commemorates George Bonsall of Glan Rheidol, who died in 1824.