Plas yn Rhiw is an early 17th-century house, originally with
two storeys and a loft. The house was extended to the N.E, probably in the
18th century, in roughly coursed masonry, and later heightened,
the latter alteration probably coinciding with the addition of a
colonnaded verandah and a low-pitched slate roof with overhanging eaves in
the early 19th century. A wing was also added on the N.W. The
stucco formerly covering the main E. front has been recently removed so
that the breaks in masonry both vertical and horizontal can easily be
detected. Over the ground floor window on the E. front in the
reconstructed portion of the house is a 19th-century
inscription I.L. 1634, which may reproduce an earlier original and
represent the date of the house.
The
interior has been much altered. There is a wide fireplace at the S.W.
gable with a recess for a winding stair. The stair between the ground
floor and the first floor has been taken out, but survives between the
first and second floors. There are several chamfered beams with rounded
stops, and at the first floor some joists with shallow mouldings on the
soffits have been exposed. Slots in the soffit of the beam to the first
floor ceiling at the S.W. end of the building reveal the site of an early
partition. The former loft has been converted into a second storey proper
by raising the eaves as described.
To
S. of the house and at right angles is a croglofft cottage,
probably 18th-century, with dormered loft. The interior has
been altered and the main room was at one time used as a bake-house and
wash-house. To the N. of the house are ruined outbuildings of 18th
century date.
