History

1903 prefabricated Scandinavian cottage, erected for one of the Lloyd Williams of Plas Gwernant (then called Alderbrook). This cottage was also known as Plas Bach. Carefully restored by Paul Key 1994-5, removing C20 blockwork cladding.

Exterior

Painted timber-frame with boarded panels, on stone plinth with deep eaved slate hipped roofs and brick stacks. Single-storey main cottage imported from Sweden with locally-made two-storey hipped kitchen to NE angle, and single storey hipped N range, extended N in early C20.

S front is panelled with raised planks: lower panels vertically-boarded, main panels horizontally-boarded and shallow panels under eaves with row of raised six-pointed stars. Moulded rafter ends under boarded eaves. C20 casement pair each side with plain arched glazed head, originally with blind boxes. Centre hipped porch, up four steps, originally open with chamfered timber piers, but inserted glazing each side of entry, and to sides. Original fretwork panel below windows. 6-panel door within, with stained glass top panels.
E side is windowless, W side has roof carried down over projecting central bay, with two big windows (under restoration 1995) and single light with top-light to sides. Brick stack on roof slope. Rear N has one window like those on front.

N rear wing has similar W and E window, 4-pane N sash, and brick N stack.
Kitchen NE wing is horizontally boarded in three tall panels below plank rail and three shallow panels for upper floor. Blank S. E ground floor large casement pair, N ground floor hipped porch with angle posts, vertical boarding, 3 4-pane windows to sides, and single light, door and 4 4-pane windows to N. Above are two big 6-pane sashes breaking through rail, with stars applied to boarding below rail. N wall-face brick stack.

Interior

Exceptionally well detailed interior with fielded 6-panel doors, panelled walls originally with hessian under wallpaper to panels and green painted framing. Panels now have exposed horizontal boarding, one panel has `Made in Sweden' and there are two painters' signatures of 1903. Room to left of entry passage has N fireplace, with grate and hand-painted tile cheeks. Room to right has fireplace to removed E chimney. NW room has S fireplace. Corridor turns right angle to E end kitchen wing with narrow stairs to servants' bedroom floor above. Off passage to N is fourth main room, apparently lengthened to N and small utility rooms.

Reasons for Listing

Listed as a rare example nationally of an imported timber house, little altered, with good interiors.

External Links

• Cadwr Listing
• Wikidata Q29495182

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.

Recommended Books

• 
  [(Bedfordshire, Huntingdon and Peterborough)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1968)
• 
  Cork: City and County (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)
• 
  Norfolk 1: Norwich and North-East: Norwich and North-east v. 1 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire, and Peterborough (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Suffolk: West: The Buildings of England (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Somerset: North and Bristol: The Buildings of England (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)