St Teilo's Church, Llandeilo Tal-y-bont facts for kids
St Teilo's Church is a very old building that was once in a place called Llandeilo Tal-y-Bont, near Pontarddulais in Wales. Today, you can visit it at the St Fagans National History Museum in Cardiff. It's a special church because it was carefully taken apart and rebuilt brick by brick at the museum!
A Long History: When Was St Teilo's Church Built?
Experts believe this church was first built a very long time ago, sometime in the 12th or 13th century. That's over 800 years ago! People used the church regularly until about 1850. After that, it was only used for a few services during the summer.
Imagine this: as recently as the early 1900s, people would use small, light boats called coracles to cross the River Loughor just to get to church! The church stopped being used completely in 1970. Then, in 1984, it began to be carefully taken apart so it could be moved to St Fagans.
Hidden Art: What Was Found on the Walls?
Before the church was moved, something amazing was discovered! Hidden under the plaster on the walls were old paintings. When the church was taken apart, these paintings were carefully removed and saved. The oldest painting found was a picture of St Catherine, which is thought to be from the 1400s.
Rebuilding the Past: How Was the Church Reconstructed?
The church was rebuilt at St Fagans to look just like it would have in the year 1530. This was a huge project! New wooden beams for the roof came from Northeast Wales. A new rood screen (a special screen that separates parts of the church) and a loft were carved from Radnorshire oak wood. A skilled carpenter named Ray Smith MBE led this work.
The old wall paintings were also brought back to life. About one-third of the paintings you see today are reconstructions of the original ones found under the plaster. The real, original paintings are kept safe by the National Museum of Wales. The rest of the paintings were created by experts who studied other old church paintings to make sure they looked just right.
One of the original paintings showed the Holy Trinity, with God the Father sitting behind a crucifix. People believe that the face of the king in this painting looks like King Henry VIII of England. This idea is supported by another image on the opposite wall that looks like Henry's royal seal!
St Teilo's Church was the 41st building to be opened to the public at the St Fagans museum. It was officially reopened in 2007 by Dr Rowan Williams, who was the Archbishop of Canterbury at the time.
