Llandeilo Talybont Church - 2

As promised, here are the rest of my images of Llandeilo Talybont Church , at the National History Museum in St. Fagan's. I mentioned in part one of my feature about the church, that the interior walls have been decorated in pre-Reformation style. Note the simplicity of the images. This reflects the fact that medieval church interiors were usually decorated, pre-Reformation, by local parishioners, rather than commissioned artists. Although nowhere near as grandiose as the works of Michelangelo, I suspect a great deal of love and dedication went into such simple artwork.

Note also, the simplicity of the altar itself. Churches in those days served as both spiritual centres and a place for the locals to gather - a kind of medieval community centre.

Here's a slightly closer look at the artwork in the above image. With sunlight streaming in through the window, and bouncing off the pristine, white walls, the artwork proved quite difficult to capture.

This next one is my favourite shot of the day. I wish the floor had been covered in something other than modern mats. As it was a rainy day, I guess they were placed there to prevent accidents, in compliance with health and safety regulations.

Apart from the mats, looking out through this door really was like peeking into a long bygone era. I hope to return to St. Fagan's sometime soon, but not yet. I'm waiting for the school summer holidays to end, early in September, as the place will probably be overrun. I hope you enjoyed my shots of the Old Church on the Marsh, as it's always been known by the people of the Pontarddulais and Hendy areas.

Llandeilo Talybont Church - 1

As promised, here are a few more of my images from St. Fagan's. It shows Llandeilo Talybont church. This medieval church was originally Roman Catholic, but during the days of Henry VIII and the Reformation, it was ransacked and turned into an Anglican church. I can remember this church standing at its original location, on marshes adjacent to the River Loughor, between Pontarddulais and Hendy. In fact, Pontarddulais was originally called Llandeilo Talybont. The church was eventually abandoned, due to its isolation, encroaching marshland and the ensuing floods. You can read more about the church's history, and see images of it in its original location here and here.


Before it was dismantled and removed to St. Fagan's, Llandeilo Talybont had fallen into a sad state. Having lived within a few miles of the church during my childhood and adolescence, I remember it being a dirty grey colour, instead of pristine white. The interior of the church had been vandalised, and desecrated by a Satanic cult, who left behind many remnants of black masses celebrated there. For more information about the reconstruction of the church, including images of it before and after restoration, visit this page.

Even though I'm not a religious person, I love old churches. Since its reconstruction at St. Fagan's, Llandeilo Talybont has yet to be reconsecrated, but it has a lovely, airy and peaceful feel to it. This pic shows my first glimpse of the interior.


Here's a close-up of the rustic stone font you can see about half way down the far right hand side of the above image. I love its functional simplicity.


Here's a look at some of the interior artwork. This particular work is above the altar. Although the artwork inside the church is in an authentic, pre-Reformation, medieval style, it's not original artwork. However, upon stripping away layers of limewash, etc, during the restoration, numerous authentic medieval paintings were found, which are believed to date back to the thirteenth or fourteenth centuries. In order to preserve them, the paintings were removed to another part of the museum. You can see one of them here.


I'll be posting a few more images of the church's interior soon. In the meantime, if you want more information, including historical and architectural data, visit the National History Museum's Llandeilo Talybont page.