Unsung treasure

A new Cardiff University project aiming to discover more of the history of one of Gwynedd's unsung treasures is underway. Led by the School of History, Archaeology and Religion, the four-week project at Plas Brynkir in North Wales aims to reveal more about the site, which was once a large mansion house. A non-invasive survey will focus on the upper and lower houses at Brynkir which date from the 17^th Century, recording the ground plan, elevations and chronology of the lower house, and contrasting and comparing it with that of the upper house. 'Brynkir appears to be a 'Unit System' house, composed of at least four separate buildings, which are awkwardly connected at corners or are entirely separate from adjacent structures,' said PhD student and lead on the project, Mark Baker. A geophysical survey of the immediate area around both houses will also help establish whether any structures survive beneath current ground surface level. The site also offers unique opportunities for investigating aspects of traditional architecture, in particular, the association between the two mansion houses. The detailed study of these will potentially shed important light on building design and construction, as well as on the provision made for partible inheritance and the spatial aspects of social organisation.