Church of St Egwad, Llanfynydd, Carmarthenshire

Entry Name: Church of St Egwad

Listing Date: 8 July 1966

Last Amended: 9 April 2003

Grade: II*

Source: Cadw

Source ID: 10927

Building Class: Religious, Ritual and Funerary

Also known as: St Egwad's Church, Llanfynydd

ID on this website: 300010927

Location: In a round churchyard in the centre of the village.

County: Carmarthenshire

Community: Llanfynydd

Traditional County: Carmarthenshire

Tagged with: Church building

History

The earliest part of the church is probably the tower, of c1400. The nave and chancel were probably built soon after, the N aisle is C16. The nave has a stair projection and window for the rood loft probably of late medieval date, although it has been suggested that it was built in the 1630s under the influence of Archbishop Laud. Other features of the C17 include the S door. The church was restored in 1861, when some of the present windows were inserted.

Exterior

A Tudor-Gothic style church comprising nave with lower and narrow chancel and W tower, and a N aisle and vestry (formerly a chapel) under a single roof and battered at the base. Walls are rubble stone with bigger dressed quoins, the roof is slate. The nave has renewed SW quoins. Windows are square-headed and have sunk spandrels. In the S wall of the nave the C17 doorway has a segmental head and single continuous chamfer, with C19 double boarded doors and strap hinges. To the R of the doorway is a 2-light window with pointed lights and hood mould, then a 3-light window with round-headed lights. Below the latter is an early memorial with pediment attached to the wall. At the E end of the nave is a rood stair projection under an outshut roof, except that on the R side is a gabled 3-light window lighting the former rood with round-headed lights and weathered hood mould. The chancel has a cusped single-light C19 window in the S wall and 3-light E window renewed in 1861 with round-headed lights and hood mould. Set back on the N side is the similar but original 3-light vestry E window, below which are stone steps to a boiler room. The vestry has a 3-light N window with round-headed lights and drip mould, the N aisle has two 2-light windows with pointed lights and similar drip moulds. The 3-light aisle W window is a C20 replacement or insertion.

The tower is 3 stages and battered at the base. In the lower stage is a W door under a relieving arch and recessed beneath a corbel table. It has a 2-centred head with 2 continuous orders of wave moulding. Double boarded doors with strap hinges are C19. In the second stage is a small narrow window in the S face. The bell stage has single-light cusped windows. The W and S are glazed, of which the S is a C19 replacement; the N and E have louvres, of which the N window is a C19 replacement. The embattled parapet projects on a corbel table.

Interior

The main entrance in pre-Reformation times was probably through the W door. At the base of the tower, which has a plastered segmental tunnel vault, is a stoup with pointed trefoil head. The W doorway to the nave has a continuous moulding and C19 doors similar to the external W door.

The nave has an elliptical C19 boarded wagon roof on corbelled ribs. The 4-bay N arcade is late medieval, and has plain chamfered square piers and pointed arches. On the E side of the arcade is a high segmental-headed doorway to the vestry. In the W wall is a pointed doorway, with C19 studded door, to the stair turret. In the S wall is a doorway with Tudor arch, leading to the rood stair, which has stone treads. The lower chancel arch has a single order of chamfer and on its R side is a square-headed squint. The N aisle retains an 8-bay late medieval arched-brace roof, with some C19 replacement. A partition has been built between aisle and vestry. The vestry, formerly a chapel, retains a plastered wagon roof on a moulded cornice. The chancel has a shallow segmental wagon roof of the C19. Between chancel and vestry is a wide segmental arch.

The octagonal font is C19. The pews, with shaped ends, polygonal wooden pulpit, and open-fronted choir stalls with poppy heads to the ends, are all of 1861. The communion rail, perhaps later, has iron uprights, scrolled brackets and wooden rail. Two windows have stained glass. The central light in the E window shows John the Baptist and is dated 1865. The N aisle W window, of c1968, depicts ''''''''suffer little children''''''''.

There are several memorials. In the chancel N wall is a Gothic wall tablet to David Jones (d 1869). The chancel S wall has 4 large simple slate memorials with inscriptions, of the C18 and C20. It also has a small alabaster tablet with draped urn, to Rev William Williams (d 1827). In the nave W wall is a marble tablet with pediment, commemorating the dead in the 1914-18 war, by J W Davies of Llanfynydd.

Reasons for Listing

Listed grade II* as a substantial medieval church retaining early form and detail, including especially fine arcade and aisle roof, with good C19 interior detail.

External Links

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.