Craftsmanship & Planning Of The Old House

Pantyrhwch ar ôl ei adfer.
Pantyrhwch after restoration. Image/Llun: DS2011_056_001

Pantyrhwch, Llanwnnen, Ceredigion
Mae ‘bwthyn’ yn derm braidd yn gyffredinol am amryw o wahanol fathau o annedd y mae’n ddefnyddiol gwahaniaethu rhyngddynt. Yn eu plith yr oedd y bythynnod y cafwyd caniatâd i’w codi ar dir comin; bythynnod a godwyd heb ganiatâd gan sgwatwyr sef, yn aml, ‘tai unnos’; hafotai neu luestai gwahanol ffermydd; bythynnod diwydiannol; ‘cartrefi o waith cartref’ (fel Wig-wen-fach) a godwyd gan grefftwyr a thyddynwyr, a bythynnod a ffermdai bach a godwyd gan ystadau. Trafodir hwy i gyd yn llyfr Eurwyn Wiliam Y Bwthyn Cymreig (CBHC, 2010).

Enghraifft dda o’r bwthyn-ffermdy pwrpasol yw Pantyrhwch, Llanwnnen, Ceredigion. Er bod iddo gynllun anarferol, mae’n nodweddiadol o’r math hŷn o fwthyn. Yn y talcen y mae drws y tŷ, tebyg i batrwm tŷ hir, ond cegin a ychwanegwyd at yr adeilad, yn hytrach na beudy, yw’r ‘ystafell allanol’. Elfen fwya’r brif ystafell (y gegin) yw mantell enfawr y simnai – mantell a godwyd o blastr, coed a phlethwaith. Mae’n fwy na thebyg mai cyfuniad o ystafell wely a pharlwr oedd yr ystafell fewnol. Er bod dau lawr i’r tŷ, cyfyng iawn yw’r grisiau, ac mae dau hanner-gris i bob prif ris. Tipyn o gamp yw dringo i siambrau’r llawr cyntaf heb orfod meddwl am y grisiau.

Wedi’i adfer, yn hytrach na’i foderneiddio, y mae Pantyrhwch, ac fe ddiogelwyd yr hen nodweddion ynddo oherwydd ansawdd y defnyddiau a’r grefftwriaeth. Gan fod y perchnogion yn parchu crefftwaith a chynllun yr hen dŷ, mae’r rheiny’n cyd-fynd yn hapus â ffordd gyfoes o fyw.

Cysylltau:

• Pantyrhwch, Llanwnnen NPRN 412117
• Wig-wen-fach, Llanerchaeron NPRN 35396

Pantyrhwch y grisiau a’r hanner grisiau.
Pantyrhwch stair with staggered half steps. Image/Llun: DS2011_056_003

Pantyrhwch, Llanwnnen, Ceredigion
‘Cottage’ is rather a catch-all term for a number of different types of dwelling which it is useful to distinguish. These included permitted cottages on common land; squatters’ cottages erected without permission, often as ‘one-night’ houses; summer dairies (hafod, lluest) attached to farms; industrial cottages, ‘home-made homes’ built by craftsmen and small-holders (like Wig-wen-fach), and estate-built cottages and small farmhouses. These are all discussed in Eurwyn Wiliam’s book on The Welsh Cottage (RCAHMW, 2010).

Pantyrhwch, Llanwnnen, Ceredigion, is a good example of a purpose-built cottage-farmhouse. The plan is unusual but characteristic of the older type of cottage. The house is entered from the gable end in the manner of a longhouse although the ‘outer room’ is an added back kitchen rather than a cowhouse. The main room (kitchen) is dominated by a huge fireplace hood made of plaster, timber and wattle. The inner room was probably a parlour bedroom. The house is fully storeyed but the stairs are designed not to take up much space and there are two half-steps to each riser. Going upstairs to the first-floor chambers without thinking about the steps required some practise.

Pantyrhwch has been restored rather than modernised. The old features have been preserved because of the quality of the materials and the workmanship. The owners respect the craftsmanship and planning of the old house and this happily coexists with a contemporary lifestyle.

Links:

• Pantyrhwch, Llanwnnen NPRN 412117
• Wig-wen-fach, Llanerchaeron NPRN 35396

Cyhoeddiadau/Publication:

• Trysorau Cudd: Darganfod Treftadaeth Cymru
• Hidden Histories: Discovering the Heritage of Wales

BBC2 Wales - Hidden Histories - Series 3

• Episode 1
• Episode 2

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