Seren Bethle'm

Inside the image.

The square cover has a vivid red ground around a large, irregular-edged panel of warm cream paper. The panel sits centrally, its torn or deckled edges uneven against the red, and contains a monochrome drawing of a stone church. The church is seen from the front at a slight angle: a tall, narrow spire rises near the centre, above a steep roof and a detailed façade with arched windows and a central entrance. Low stone walls and uneven paving lead towards it; leafy trees and shrubs flank the building. The drawing is small within the pale panel, leaving open cream space above and around the roof, while the church and foreground occupy its lower half. Fine black and grey linework gives the scene a sketch-like, etched appearance, with denser dark marks in the windows, roof and stones.

Glossy-looking holly leaves and red berries overlap the paper panel and red ground at the left edge, with a second leafy sprig and berries entering from the lower right. The foliage is dark green with lighter highlights and sharply pointed leaves. These coloured branches frame the otherwise restrained cream-and-ink illustration, partly covering its edges. The red background is uninterrupted across the top and corners, and remains visible beneath the lower lettering and around the panel.

Large pale-gold serif capitals across the top read “SEREN BETHLE’M”; a smaller line directly beneath reads “GWLEDD O GAROLAU”. Near the bottom of the cream panel, the title “CÔR RHUTHUN” appears in large dark red serif capitals, with a small decorative accent above the initial C. Two centred lines of smaller pale lettering below read “HOFF EMYNAU – CYFROL 1” and “BEST LOVED HYMNS – VOLUME 1”. The typography is formally centred and stacked, with the large lines anchoring the top and bottom of the composition. The overall image combines coloured, cut-out-looking foliage and lettering with a hand-drawn architectural scene on a paper-like inset.