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Drawing a best-selling Christmas card, travelling around the country to arrange exhibitions, looking after Quarrymen's Houses! These are just some of the things that Tudur Jones of the National Slate Museum has seen and done during a 36-year career.

A treasured  member of staff with Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales, Tudur Jones retires this week from his post as Documentations Officer. His career began in October 1973 as a artist technician in the Education Department at the National Museum in Cardiff, moving to the National History Museum at St Fagans in 1980. In 1989 he re-located to north Wales with his family and started working at Llanberis at what was then Power of Wales Museum becoming Documentations officer at the National Slate Museum in 1996 after its re-development:

 "Over the years my role with  Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales has changed a great deal - but that has kept it Interesting.' said Tudur. "Museum documentation is the mainstay of work at the moment, identifying objects and cataloguing them so as to preserve them for the future. I've been very fortunate to have been able to work at several of Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales' sites and I've always enjoyed the variety of working in such wonderful places as well as the opportunity to learn from the other staff and meeting different people. I've enjoyed every minute and the time has literally flown by."

An artist at heart, Tudur attended the Foundation Course at Newport College of Art and then studied Fine Art at Goldsmith's College, London. Spending more time on his painting is one of the things he is looking forward to the most during his retirement - as well as spending some more time on his treasured confectionary wrappers collection:

"I've been fortunate to have been able to use my artistic talents throughout my time at the museum. I've worked on over 25 publications and produced many drawings including Kennixton Farmhouse at St Fagans, which became one of the Museum's best-selling Christmas cards. I've worked with several local artists to put on exhibitions including Keith Bowen, Rob Piercy and Keith Andrew and the late Kyffin Williams and Selwyn Jones, my former tutor at Newport. More recently I've spent a lot of time working on the drawings of M. E. Thompson -  a lady artist who spent time in the quarries of north Wales in the 1950s - and whose drawings are now in the Museum's collections.

"Working in such a beautiful place as Llanberis has given me great inspiration over the years and I am looking forward to spending a bit more time on my own painting but I am also looking forward to expanding my collection of chocolate confectionary wrappers. I enjoy seeing how the merchandising of bars like Cadbury's Dairy Milk, Aero and Kit Kat wrappers have changed over the years -  I've been collecting since the 1980s."

 Dafydd Roberts, Keeper of the National Slate Museum said: "Tudur's retirement will be a great loss to the Museum. He has been an exemplary member of staff over the years and his knowledge and dedication to the museum will be sorely missed. We wish him all the best for a very long and happy retirement."

Press Information: For more press information and photographs please contact Julie Williams on 01286 873707 email: julie.williams@amgueddfacymru.ac.uk. Photographs are available from the National Slate Museum.

Notes to Editors: Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales operates seven museums across Wales National Museum Cardiff, St Fagans: National History Museum, National Roman Legion Museum, Caerleon, Big Pit: National Coal Museum, Blaenafon, National Wool Museum, Dre-fach Felindre, National Slate Museum, Llanberis and the National Waterfront Museum, Swansea. Entry to all Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales sites is free, thanks to the support of the Welsh Assembly Government. 

Cymru.