Couple renovating manor uncover 'priceless' angels

Two angels, carved from oak, have been uncovered at a 200-year-old hall undergoing restoration

A couple overseeing the £11m restoration of a derelict Welsh manor house have appealed for information about two carved wooden angels found at the property.

Andrew and Louisa Godfrey took control of Pool Park, near Ruthin, Denbighshire, last year, with ambitious plans to restore the 200-year-old hall to its former glory.

Among the artefacts found in the house are two angels, carved from oak, which once stood as newel posts at the foot of the house's main stairway.

Ms Godfrey said she would love to know who carved the angels, which she described as "priceless".

The manor's restoration is part of the couple's wider plan to build a holiday and leisure park in the 26-acre grounds.

"The angels, we believe, were part of the original build in 1826," said Ms Godfrey, who has immersed herself in Pool Park's history.

"William, the second Lord Bagot, had the place designed by the architect John Buckler and he wanted it to be very grand."

Andrew and Louisa plan to create a holiday and leisure park in the 26-acre grounds of the hall

"They've been carved, one with its eyes open and one with its eyes closed and we're not aware of the significance of that," she added.

"We would be really intrigued to find out if anyone knows why that's the case."

The carvings appear to have their own guardian angel.

They were both stolen from the hall, which stood empty for 30 years until the Godfreys took ownership, but were tracked down by the police and returned.

But restoring the angels to their rightful place in Pool Park is going to be a costly job.

In total, Mr Godfrey has estimated it will cost more than £11m to fully restore Pool Park.

The house was thought to have been established in the 16th century and rebuilt in the early 1800s

"To enable us to renovate the mansion, we're going to renovate the other areas on the park," he said.

Mr Godfrey is working on plans for about 60 lodges and treehouses to be dotted around the grounds, with the income they generate being used to restore the main house.

If all goes to plan, it is hoped that Pool Park could be completed and ready for hire in five years.

What is Pool Park?

It was once a deer park belonging to nearby Ruthin Castle.

The house was thought to have been established in the 16th century and rebuilt by William Bagot, 2nd Lord Bagot in 1826-1829 to the designs of John Buckler, and assisted by local architect Benjamin Gummow.

The Bagot family lived at Blithfield Hall in Staffordshire and rented Pool Park to a series of tenants.

It was last occupied as a home by Sir Ernest Tate, president of the sugar refiners Tate and Lyle.

In the late 1930s it was bought for use as a medical facility linked to the former North Wales Hospital in Denbigh.

It ceased to be part of the NHS in the late 1980s.

After being sold off, it stood empty until it was bought by the Godfreys last year.