Plas Gunter Mansion

24/06/2026

One of the most important stories for us to tell is the one of the executed Welsh priests who practiced Catholicism at Gunter Mansion.

They went from secretly holding Mass in the chapel to being hung, drawn and quartered after being discovered.

Telling this Welsh history is how we can protect a piece of Abergavenny’s heritage for everyone.

21/06/2026

Gunter Mansion is a small house with a big story.

From early Roman discoveries and through times of religious persecution, this 400-year-old building is now embarking on a new chapter in its history and has many secrets to tell.

In 2028, it will welcome visitors to experience the hidden Catholic chapel, 17th century plaster ceiling and the story of the Gunter family who lived there.

If you care about its preservation, you can support us in a variety of ways.

👉 You can become a member for £15 a year: https://www.plasguntermansion.org.uk/member

👉 Receive exclusive benefits by becoming a Founder for £10 per month:
https://www.plasguntermansion.org.uk/founder

👉 Or support us with a one-time or monthly donation of your choosing: https://www.plasguntermansion.org.uk/donate

18/06/2026

Say hello to our newly formed group of garden volunteers! 👋
Some of the tasks they’ll be involved with include:

- Planting and horticulture
- Putting together our raised beds
- Ensuring essential watering
- Fruit tree training
- Creating and maintaining a volunteer rota

We can’t wait to see the garden develop!

16/06/2026

What a brilliant start to the sessions! 🪏
All week, we're excavating the garden and illustrating artefacts with local school pupils and members of the community.

For those joining us this week - see you soon!

What a fantastic first day at Plas Gunter Mansion!

Black Mountains Archaeology was delighted to welcome pupils from Our Lady & St Michael’s Primary School and King Henry VIII School as part of our Community Archaeology Project, delivered in partnership with Plas Gunter Mansion and funded by National Lottery Heritage Fund.

The pupils took part in archaeological excavations, a pottery illustration workshop, and a historical treasure hunt around the Priory precinct, discovering the rich history hidden within the heart of Abergavenny.

The excavation proved particularly exciting, with the children uncovering hundreds of artefacts dating from the medieval, post-medieval and Victorian periods. From pottery and clay to***co pipe fragments to glass, brick, tile and animal bone, every find helped tell a story about the people who lived and worked here over the centuries.

It was wonderful to see so much enthusiasm, curiosity and teamwork throughout the day. For many of the children, it was their first experience of archaeology, and they embraced every opportunity to get hands-on with the past.

A huge thank you to all of the pupils, teachers, volunteers and staff who helped make the day such a success. We look forward to welcoming more schools and community participants throughout the week as we continue to uncover the hidden history of Plas Gunter Mansion.

14/06/2026

During the renovations, we’ve revealed the original laths between the first and ground floors. The laths are the thin, narrow strips of wood you can see in the picture.

We’re looking forward to peeling back more layers in the house. There’s likely to be a lot more discoveries to come!

📬 Sign up to our newsletter to get the latest updates on our progress: https://shorturl.at/nb5nn

12/06/2026

Catholicism and Gunter Mansion's chapel in the 1600s ⛪️

A law passed under the reign of Elizabeth I in the late 1500s said that preaching the Roman Catholic religion and refusing to acknowledge the Queen as head of the church was treason. The punishment was being hung, drawn and quartered. This law still existed in the 1600s.

However, local Catholic priests, including David Lewis and Phillip Evans, secretly held mass and promoted the Catholic religion in Abergavenny and surrounding areas. This included in the attic of Gunter Mansion.

The priests were prosecuted for this under the Elizabethan law and were executed in 1679.

The chapel was boarded up, disappearing from sight and memory for over 200 years.

You can read more about Gunter Mansion’s history on our website:
https://www.plasguntermansion.org.uk/history

Drawing by Ken Adams.

10/06/2026

We have an unexpected slot available for our archeology experience and we're opening up the afternoon of Wednesday 17 June to the community!

This is a fantastic opportunity to get directly involved in a real archaeological investigation at the rear of Plas Gunter Mansion.

During the half day session, we'll be focusing on excavating the trenches. The session will run as follows:

12:15- 12:30pm - Arrival and Welcome
12:30 - 14:00 - Excavation
14:00 - 14:15pm - Break
14:15 - 15:15 - Excavation
15:30 - Leave

Would you like to take part in this hands-on Community Archaeology experience?

Sessions are open to anyone over the age of 18 and are completely free of charge to participants.

To read more, see our Community Archaeology Information Pack here:
https://mcusercontent.com/c3a609022d5172c52e66079cf/files/9b47a1db-28c9-df58-db4e-3dd190993002/Community_Archaeology_Information_Pack.pdf

We may take photographs or video footage during the sessions, so please download and sign a photography and video consent form here:
https://mcusercontent.com/c3a609022d5172c52e66079cf/files/fc220907-2f5a-6f77-ae6b-1e5efda33492/Plas_Gunter_photo_consent_form_adults_.pdf

If you would like to book a session or have any questions, please email [email protected]

07/06/2026

Gunter Mansion is 400 years old - living through two world wars and a lot of Welsh rain. 🌧️

03/06/2026

We only have four places left on Friday 19 June for the Community Archaeology experience!

This is a fantastic opportunity to get directly involved in a real archaeological investigation at the rear of Plas Gunter Mansion. Participants will have the opportunity to help excavate, record and investigate our site.

We know that previous excavations have revealed a portion of a Roman road and post-Medieval finds, so this is your opportunity to find some treasure!

Sessions are open to anyone over the age of 18 and are completely free of charge to participants.

To read more, see our Community Archaeology Information Pack here:
https://mcusercontent.com/c3a609022d5172c52e66079cf/files/9b47a1db-28c9-df58-db4e-3dd190993002/Community_Archaeology_Information_Pack.pdf

We may take photographs or video footage during the sessions, so please download and sign a photography and video consent form here:
https://mcusercontent.com/c3a609022d5172c52e66079cf/files/fc220907-2f5a-6f77-ae6b-1e5efda33492/Plas_Gunter_photo_consent_form_adults_.pdf

If you would like to book a session or have any questions, please email [email protected]

This is in partnership with Black Mountains Archaeology.

31/05/2026

Our connection to St Mary’s Priory Church ⛪️

St Mary’s Priory in Abergavenny was founded around 1087 and, over the centuries, became a wealthy and influential institution. It experienced periods of decline caused by poor discipline, the Black Death and damage from Welsh raids led by Owain Glyndŵr.

By the early 1500s, the Priory held extensive lands and income from shops, mills and local properties. By the time of the Dissolution of the Monasteries under Henry VIII, the Priory had only a Prior and four monks who used the chancel and the body of the church was used by the town parishioners. Henry VIII agreed to allow the parishioners to have the church as its parish church as St John's (the original parish church) was too small. St John's was endowed with some of the tithes which had been paid by parishioners to the Priory and became King Henry's Grammar School. The Priory lands and buildings were then sold.

James Gunter purchased part of this land and used stone from the Priory to build a grand house called Priory House. After James’s death shortly afterwards, the property passed to his son, Robert Gunter. Priory House was demolished in the 1950s and the Priory Centre occupies part of that ground.

Read more about Gunter Mansion's history on our website: https://www.plasguntermansion.org.uk