Adulam Baptist Chapel with Vestry (Ysgoldy Adulam), Baptistery, Railings and Gates

Adulam Baptist Chapel with Vestry, Baptistery, Railings and Gates

This is a listed Methodist chapel complex comprising several linked structures set back from the road. The chapel itself is a modest building in simple Classical style, with the vestry building (Ysgoldy Adulam) occupying lower ground adjacent to the road and linked to the chapel at the upper storey via a shared corridor and entrance. An open air baptistery occupies ground immediately adjacent to the vestry.

The Chapel

The chapel front gable faces north and is rendered and scored to imitate ashlar joints. The sides and rear are now dry dashed. The building features a moulded stucco surround to the door and windows, and raised stucco quoins. Stone window sills support a slate roof with slightly projecting verge and eaves; the front has decorative consoles to the soffit and the eaves carry a moulding.

The front gable elevation displays two tall round-headed windows and a small high-level wheel window above a raised panel inscribed with the chapel name and dates. The entrance comprises round-headed double doors, each leaf of five panels, set deeply in the wall. Three windows occupy each side. A slate plaque beneath the front left window records the chapel history and the names of ministers. The old name plaque is re-fixed to the west side.

The Vestry Building (Ysgoldy Adulam)

Ysgoldy Adulam displays more studied Classical detailing than the chapel and is slightly larger. The building is constructed of stuccoed brickwork with coped gables at front and rear, and strong rustication to the quoins and basement. It has a slate roof with deeply projecting eaves. The main door is round-headed and deeply set beneath a pedimented feature, the frieze of which carries the name and date. An early example of standard steel window sections is evident here. The lower windows are square-headed while the main ones are round-headed.

The Baptistery

The baptistery occupies ground to the left of the main gates and in front of Ysgoldy Adulam. It consists of a concrete pool with steps down, surrounded by a low wall with coping and decorative cast-iron railings. Adjacent iron gates flank square piers of rock-faced stone, each topped with pyramidal rock-faced stone caps.

Interior of the Chapel

The chapel is entered either via the link corridor from the vestry or through the front doors into an anteroom. The anteroom is laid with plain coloured encaustic tiles and contains a window with obscured glass and coloured margins overlooking the chapel interior. Two symmetrical pine doors, each of four panels, provide passage into the main chapel space. Symmetrical stairs to the gallery feature quarter landings, a moulded handrail on turned balusters and newels.

Seating is arranged in four main blocks, with the outer blocks facing inwards and curved seating at the rear corners. The central division is staggered, with a side gangway leading from the vestry entrance. The seats have simply carved toprails, ends and gates. The seat ends are fitted with brass and iron umbrella stands and the gates carry enamelled numbers.

The pulpit has a bowed front with twin stairs. The cadair fawr (minister's chair) features a curved backrail concentric with the pulpit front and is raised two steps. Both the pulpit and cadair fawr have strongly moulded hardwood handrails on painted cast-iron ornamental balusters and newels. A margin decorated with plain encaustic tiles, originally from the pulpit baptistery, edges the cadair fawr. Behind the pulpit stands a large recess framed with bold plaster mouldings, containing an organ by Henry Willis (1952) with displayed pipes above a panelled screen.

A fine gallery occupies three sides of the chapel. The gallery handrail sits on cast-iron openwork supports of curved profile, mounted on a dentillated moulded bearer supported by seven deeply fluted decorative cast-iron columns. Special doubly-curved castings carry the design seamlessly around the corners. The gallery seating consists of four rows at the sides and seven rows above the entrance, including curved seats at the corners. The seats have simply carved toprails and ends without doors. The seating-backs at window positions feature open design with balusters to admit light; elsewhere they consist of vertical boarding.

The ceiling is divided by bold decorative ribs into seven main boarded panels with narrow margin panels. Two large decorative plaster roundels occupy the crossings of ribs, with smaller decorative grilles at the corners and centres of the margins. Outside the margins the ceiling is plastered and an enriched cornice runs around the perimeter.