Heritage
in Wales
Recording the Romanesque
sculpture of Wales
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ISSUE 63
AUTUMN 2016
Architectural historian, David
Robinson, charts the prodigious
burst of new building which followed
the Norman invasion of Wales. In
particular, he highlights the sculpture
associated with the distinctive
Romanesque architectural style and
invites volunteers to take part in a
national recording programme.
For the Normans who entered Wales in the late eleventh
and twelfth centuries, every emphasis was on the
virtues of the new. These often violent and land-hungry
chancers quickly changed the political, economic and
social landscapes of the country. At the same time, they
opened the gates to a widespread cultural invasion from
the Continent. Notably, it was the secular barons and
senior churchmen of the Norman elite who introduced
Romanesque architecture to Wales.
‘Romanesque’ (sub-Roman) is a broad stylistic label,
these days applied to forms of architecture found widely
in Europe from the late tenth to the twelfth centuries. In
Britain, however, the thick walls, rounded-head arches and
novel sculptural detail of the Romanesque are undeniably
linked to the Norman era.
The outburst of new building which followed the Norman
invasion of Wales was spearheaded by castles, cathedrals and
monasteries. But the work also spread to new urban centres
and eventually to almost every village in the conquered
territories of the eastern and southern March.
In terms of castle building, the Romanesque style first
appeared in the great tower at Chepstow Castle. Thereafter,
it was employed in many of the Norman strongholds across
south Wales, including Newcastle (Bridgend), Ogmore,
Tretower and Usk.
Meanwhile, Norman-approved bishops were installed in
the four Welsh dioceses and new stone cathedrals were
constructed over the course of the twelfth century. The early
work at Bangor is known mostly from excavation, whereas at
Llandaff parts of the Romanesque cathedral built by Bishop
Urban (1107−34) still exist. Raised on a scale hitherto
unimagined this deep into Wales, its heavily sculptured
presbytery arch represented something exotic and quite new.
The eleventh and twelfth-century Benedictine monasteries
founded, for example, at Brecon, Chepstow, Ewenny,
Monmouth, St Dogmaels and Usk were again instrumental
in drawing pools of masons and sculptors from England and
further afield to work in the new architectural fashion. The
early Cistercians, too, happily built in an austere version of
the Romanesque, best seen in the plain nave arcades at
Margam Abbey.
This was also the era in which many of our parish churches
were raised in stone for the first time. In some cases, traces
of early fabric stand out clearly in the existing church. Such
twelfth-century origins can, however, be disguised by the
windows and doorways introduced by later generations.
Frequently there is just a Romanesque font which survives,
but this reminds us that there was once almost certainly an
entire Norman church in that location.
Left: The south transept at Ewenny Priory, one of the best surviving
Romanesque buildings in Wales by 1134.
Below: Detail of the tympanum at St Padarn’s Church, Llanbadarn Fawr
(Powys), with a lion and lioness either side of a tree, about 1145−50.
© Crown copyright: RCAHMW
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Heritage
in Wales
The Romanesque style was by no means confined to
those areas settled by the Norman barons. In north-west
Wales, for instance, under the patronage of the Gwynedd
ruler Gruffudd ap Cynan (d. 1137), there was clearly a
flowering of Romanesque architecture and sculpture.
Well attested at Aberffraw and Penmon on Anglesey,
the widespread nature of Gruffudd’s church-building
programme was highlighted by his biographer.
There was a strong tradition of stone sculpture in
Wales long before the Normans arrived, highlighted by the
great crosses found at Carew, Llantwit Major, Margam and
Penmon. We can also point to examples of transitional
sculpture, bridging the gap between the pre- and postinvasion periods. But full-blown Romanesque sculpture has
its own very distinct characteristics, much of it created in
unity with the new architectural style.
Chevron or zigzag ornament is the most familiar
characteristic, commonly found around doorways,
windows and arches. At St Davids Cathedral, for instance,
rebuilt from the 1180s as the last great expression of the
Romanesque style in Wales, there are no fewer than 22
different forms of chevron. But across the country there is
much else besides, including a variety of beast and animal
heads and the occasional figurative grouping.
Left: Completed by the 1080s, the great tower at Chepstow Castle
was one of the first Romanesque buildings in Wales to feature sculpture.
The lintel and tympanum over the main doorway are decorated with a
distinctive chip-carved saltire pattern.
Below: Detail of the sculpture on the presbytery arch at Llandaff,
part of Bishop Urban’s new cathedral, before 1137. © David Robinson
26
ISSUE 63
AUTUMN 2016
All told, Wales has more than 250 sites which retain
some element of Romanesque sculpture, with the vast
majority yet to be properly recorded for a bespoke national
database — the Corpus of Romanesque Sculpture in Britain
and Ireland (crsbi.ac.uk). With its aim of recording each and
every piece of Romanesque sculpture, the Corpus website
seeks to shed light on the artistic skills, aesthetics and beliefs
of a remarkably diverse but dynamic and highly inventive
era of our past.
With so much still to be done in Wales, we need a
body of volunteer fieldworkers. With a little training to get
you started, and basic travel expenses covered, there is
nothing to prevent you from getting involved. The hunt for
Romanesque sculpture will take you to some of the most
beautiful spots in Wales — you are bound to have fun.
Right: St Davids Cathedral represents the last great expression of the
Romanesque style in Wales, with its sculpture including 22 different
forms of chevron ornament.
Below Left: The font at Brecon Priory (now Cathedral) was carved
by a sculptor familiar with the celebrated Herefordshire School of
Romanesque Sculpture, before 1150. © David Robinson
Below right: The heavily sculpted west crossing arch at Penmon
Priory, built under the patronage of Gruffudd ap Cynan, by 1140.
© David Robinson
For more information on recording opportunities
in Wales visit crsbi.ac.uk/resources/wales
If you are interested in recording Welsh sites for
the Corpus write to: [email protected]
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