A medieval church moves to the Museum 22 February 2007 St Teilo's Church, Llandeilo Tal-y-bont, in situ in 1984 Stone mullioned medieval window uncovered from beneath layers of lime wash and render during the dismantling process Wall-painting of St Catherine, 'in situ', found on the east wall of the south transept, believed to have been painted c.1400 The medieval church from Llandeilo Tal-y-bont is the first church of its kind ever to be moved to and re-erected at a British open-air museum. The discovery of wall paintings underneath the lime-washed walls provides a fascinating insight into 15th century worship. From Llandeilo Tal-y-bont to Cardiff St Teilo's church was built during the 13th century. There was probably an earlier church on the site. Abandoned in the 1960s, it was scheduled as an Ancient Monument by Cadw: Welsh Historic Monuments in the 1980s. As the decaying church could not be saved at its original site, it was offered to the Museum in 1984 for dismantling and re-erecting at St Fagans. As the careful process of dismantling the Church began, two amazing wall-paintings from the 15th and 16th centuries were discovered, as well as numerous texts and areas of decorative patterns. These were all carefully recorded, removed and conserved. The delicate removal of layers of lime-wash from the surface of the wall-paintings provided vital clues to the date of the original building. The removal of mortar from the outside walls enabled any Victorian or later alterations to be filtered out. After dismantling, the foundations were excavated, uncovering further clues to the Church's construction. The history of the Church The first surviving church was probably a small building consisting of a nave and chancel, a pattern that was standard throughout Wales at this time, thought to be 13th to 14th century. The next addition would have been the north transept, with the south transept probably built shortly after, as both are of similar construction. These probably date from the 14th or early 15th century, which corresponds to the dating of a wall-painting on the east wall of the south transept. An extension of the south transept to form an aisle probably occurred during the late 15th century, the old south wall being replaced by an arcade of two arches, with another two cutting into both transepts. The final addition was a porch leading to the south aisle. Expanding congregations The Museum decided to rebuild the Church as it could have appeared around 1510-30. Architectural clues from this period can be used to understand the social, religious and political framework within which the Church was constructed and furnished. This closely follows the extension of the south transept to form the south aisle, presumably to accommodate a larger congregation. This could fit in with the economic recovery in Wales, after the Welsh Tudor dynasty became Kings of England in the late 15th century. This brought a period of relative calm after long periods of political and social unrest - including civil war. Various clues show the nature of worship during the period up to 1530. Most important of these are the pre-Reformation wall-paintings. They show themes from the life of Christ and many saints, including St Catherine and St Christopher. Corbel stones found in the masonry work of the chancel arch show that there were once a medieval rood screen and loft. Both the wall-paintings and the rood screen and loft would have been brightly painted. The poor man's Bible Wall-paintings in churches have been described as "the poor man's Bible". They were designed to show scenes from the Bible to a congregation unable to read or write. They were also painted to create a sense of awe, fear and obedience. In some cases, the wall-paintings like the ones found in St Teilo must have been the only means of communicating any religious message at all, as both reading the Bible and preaching were in Latin, which congregations did not understand. An end to worship The growing population of the area, the development of other larger churches and frequent acts of vandalism led to St Teilo's falling into disuse. These events reflect the social, religious and political history of the Church just as much as the pre-Reformation wall-paintings do. The re-erection of the Church at the Museum is but another phase in its history, where visitors in the 21st century will be just as valued as its medieval pilgrims! St Teilo's Church now has a good chance of surviving for many more years.
The old clock at the National Slate Museum in Llanberis, north Wales 22 February 2007 The clock above the entrance to the Welsh Slate Museum A distinctive feature of the National Slate Museum building is the diamond-shaped face of a clock on the front of the Museum. On the roofline above it is a small pagoda-like structure containing a bell and hammer, connected to the clock by a wire rope. The mechanism is installed on the second floor of the building. It was manufactured in Shropshire but it is not possible to read the date. Early photographs of the building, erected in 1870, do not show the clock, so it was probably not installed until the mid-1890s Timekeeper for quarry explosions The Museum is located within the Victorian workshops of the Dinorwig Quarry. The clock helped ensure the trains taking slate from the quarry to the Company's port at Port Dinorwic were always on time. The clock was more than simply a timekeeper for the workshops though. At some stage in its life, a series of electrical connections were added. At set intervals the clock transmitted an electrical signal to other parts of the Quarry's large site. This was to ensure that blasting happened on time. Such systems were usually marketed as 'pulsynetic clocks'. They were sold by well-known makers such as Gent, Leicester. At Dinorwig, however, a home-made, reliable solution was produced. 100-year-old graffiti A power supply was required to provide the electrical signals. This was supplied via wet cells, or accumulators, stored alongside the clock. One of the discoveries made when renovating this part of the building, in the mid-1990s, was the original graffiti on adjacent walls and panels noting the dates of battery charges. On June 10, 1909, for example, Willie Owen Williams and George Hughes charged the batteries. Cleaning the clock Although well cared for over the years, by 2001 the clock required specialist attention. J.B. Joyce and Company, the manufacturers, were still in existence. They were established at Whitchurch in Shropshire, and are still there over three hundred years later. Unfortunately, they have no records of individual clocks manufactured, but were prepared to visit the Museum to inspect the clock. The mechanism ended up being returned to the Joyce workshops where it was cleaned and serviced. The clock was then reassembled, brought back to the Museum and commissioned. Today the clock works smoothly and to a good degree of accuracy. Village timekeeper At a time when few people possessed watches, the clock installed in the Dinorwig Quarry workshops was a timekeeper for its surrounding community, with its bell being audible to most of those living in and around Llanberis. To quote one local author: 'Torrai ar y distawrwydd yn nhrymder nos, a chlywyd aml i glaf yn cwyno yn y bore,"Chysgis i ddim gwerth neithiwr - clywed yr hen gloc yn taro pob awr nes iddi 'leuo"' (It relieved the silence of the depth of night, and quite frequently one would hear of those who were unwell complaining the next morning, "I didn't sleep well last night - I could hear the old clock striking each hour until it dawned".) The old clock continues to measure the passage of time into the 21st century at Llanberis.
From a complete farmhouse to a tiny matchstick: looking after the Social History collections at St Fagans 22 February 2007 The Social History collections of Amgueddfa Cymru are housed at St Fagans. As it is an open-air museum, the objects range from historic re-erected buildings to small, fragile objects in an air-conditioned store. They vary in size from matches to four-poster beds, and can be as fragile as delicate Victorian shell ornaments or as robust as inscriptions carved on large stone blocks. A basket from the domestic collections illustrating how simple surface cleaning can have a dramatic affect on an object's appearance. Simple objects can be quite complex. This game is made out of three types of paper as well as metal, plastic, pigments and paints. Single objects can often be made of more than one material. This means that parts of the objects need different preservation techniques. Conservators have to assess new objects to stablise them, and items in the stores have to be regularly checked. Conserving for the future All objects in the Museum's collections need to be structurally sound and chemically stable if they are to survive. The first stage of treating any object is to examine it closely to see if it is complete. If it is dirty, we have to assess whether the dirt is important to the history of the object. When considering damage, it is important to understand whether the damage happened during manufacture or through use. Conserve the old original or display a fully restored object? These days, visitors do not expect every object to be "perfect". This means that we can focus on preserving what remains rather than restoring what has been lost. It also means that important information about manufacture and use is not hidden or destroyed. Having recorded an object's condition, we then apply relevant treatments. In some cases, further decay can be prevented or at least slowed by repackaging the object in acid-free materials and storing or displaying it at the correct temperature and relative humidity. When objects sensitive to fading (for example objects with dyes and pigments) are put on display, they can be displayed in reduced light. Social History objects can be made from almost anything, and nearly always use a variety of materials. Even if an artefact is entirely made out of wood, several different woods might have been used. Before conserving the object, we have to carry out tests to make sure that none of the solvents we use dissolve any part of the object. Whatever the treatment used, its application is kept to a minimum. Repairs should never obscure any details on the original object. We use a rule that a specimen should appear complete from a distance of 6 ft 6 ins., but the repairs can be seen on close examination. All aspects of this work are recorded. This means that the full history of the object is always available for reference. It also increases the information we have about the ageing of modern materials, as all treatment dates are recorded. The final stage of treating any object is to make sure that it enters or returns to a suitable environment, and that anything likely to cause decay or damage is minimised or removed. Monitoring the environment and regularly checking for pests are essential. As museum collections expand, so does the conservation work required. This has increased the emphasis of preventative conservation, for example, where a large number of objects can benefit from a small change in the environment or working practice. By revisiting the way objects are displayed and stored, we hope to move towards sustainable conservation.
Sir Charles Jackson’s unique collection of silver 19 February 2007 In 2000, Amgueddfa Cymru learned that hundreds of pieces of rare silver, which had been on loan to the Museum since it first opened its doors, were to be sold. The items, some of which date back to the 16th century, are from the collection of Sir Charles Jackson (1849-1923), a Welsh lawyer and businessman. Luckily, after much negotiation and fundraising, they were finally secured for the Museum with considerable help from the National Heritage Memorial Fund, the National Art Collections Fund and the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths. So why is this collection so important? Sir Charles Jackson (1849-1923) Sir Charles Jackson Sir Charles Jackson was born in Monmouth. He became part of a group of collectors and antiquarians that included Robert Drane, T. H. Thomas and Wilfred de Winton. Together they influenced the development of the Cardiff Museum. They also played a role in making sure the National Museum of Wales would be located in Cardiff. Remarkable treasures Some of the objects collected by Jackson are of outstanding aesthetic quality. Rare items include an early 14th century acorn-top spoon, which is one of the very first hallmarked pieces of English silver, and a complete set of 'apostle' spoons (twelve apostles and the 'Master') from 1638. The most important item is probably a two-handled cup in the 'auricular' style (a 17th century ornamental style based on parts of the human anatomy, particularly the human ear, after which the style is named) associated with the Dutch silversmith Christian van Vianen, who worked for the court of Charles I. Hallmarked 1668, this cup is one of a handful of London-made pieces in this distinctive style. The maker's mark remains unread, but could be either George Bowers or Jean-Gerard Cooques, both goldsmiths to the court of Charles II. Inspirational rarities Two-handled cup and cover, London 1668 Unusual, inspirational pieces in the collection include one of the earliest known silver wine tasters, a 17th century Catholic chalice made in Cork that can be taken apart for concealment, and an inkstand in the form of a library globe. The collection's range of more common objects, such as salt cellars and cream jugs, shows the evolution of shapes over time, and tells us a lot about social customs, particularly relating to dining. The astonishing sequence of spoons contains almost every type made over a period of 400 years. Unique academic value Although the collection contains many rare and beautiful objects, the principal reason for keeping it intact is its unique academic value. Jackson's two principal publications, English Goldsmiths and their Marks (1905) and The Illustrated History of English Plate (1911), are the foundation of modern silver scholarship. In them Jackson relied heavily on his own collection to illustrate marks and the development of styles over time. He corresponded with all the major collectors of his day, and his collection sums up knowledge of historic silver in Britain in the early 1900s. It is therefore a unique reference source and remains the subject of regular enquiries from silver specialists all over the world. The Jackson collection also complements and enriches the Museum's own outstanding collection of historic silver, much of which is associated with the historic governing families of Wales. The acquisition, after eighty years of display, of half the Jackson collection, and the likelihood that the rest will one day follow, helped the Museum develop its role as the home of one of Britain's principal study collections of historic silver. Background Reading Andrew Renton, 'Sir Charles Jackson (1849-1923)' in Silver Studies - the Journal of the Silver Society, vol 19 (2005), 144-6
Elaborate embroidered suit surviving from the 1770s 19 February 2007 Velvet suit dating from 1770 Velvet coat embroidered with silks and gold sequins. One of the most important piece of 18th century men's clothing in Amgueddfa Cymru's collections is a velvet suit dating from 1770. It belonged to Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn of Wynnstay, an extremely rich and well-known patron of the arts. His clothes reflected his lifestyle. Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn (1749-1789) of Wynnstay bought elaborate velvet suits in France and Italy while making the Grand Tour in 1768-9. During the 1770s he bought clothes from many London tailors, hosiers and lace-makers, spending around £1,000 a year on suits alone - a huge sum at the time. Gold sequins and silver thread The plum-coloured velvet coat is embroidered with silks and gold sequins. The matching waistcoat and breeches were made at a slightly later date. The Museum also bought a fine red wool coat of similar date, decorated with silver thread embroidery. Sir Watkin put on a considerable amount of weight as he grew older, and perhaps this is why the suit survived in such excellent condition. Lavish embroidery The suit coat has a cutaway front and short stand-up collar. It is lined with green silk satin to match the fabric of the waistcoat. The waistcoat has green silk satin fronts and a paler silk plain weave lining and back. Like the suit, the embroidery is of gold purl, metal sequins and floral ribbon. The work is very fine. The suit was probably produced in a London tailor's workshop. This would have employed the best craftsmen, with a number of professional, male, embroiderers. It is very likely that the red wool coat was made in the same workshop, as the embroidery also consists of gold and silver sequins and metal purl and silk threads, with similar motifs of bows, swags and tassels. Grand clothes for grand occasions Matching waistcoat and breeches These clothes were so expensive that they could have been worn at the royal court. In Wales, Sir Watkin could have worn such clothes at his coming of age party in 1770. This was legendary in its lavishness and size, with 15,000 guests and three coaches of cooks sent from London. A hall was built especially for the occasion, later incorporated into the main building at Wynnstay, with bedrooms added on above. The food eaten at the party included some 30 cows, 50 pigs, 50 calves, 80 sheep, 18 lambs, 37 turkeys and 421 pounds of salmon. This could help explain Sir Watkin's later size! Five years later, in 1735, King George III appointed Sir Watkin to be Lord Lieutenant (the King's representative) for Merioneth.
