Casgliadau ac Ymchwil

Saturday 19th July saw the official launch of the 'I Spy...Nature' Exhibition at National Museum Cardiff. The exhibition was officially opened by BBC wildlife presenter Dr Rhys Jones and many families were able to experience the exhibition first hand. Natural Science curators were also on hand showing a plethora of specimens from the Museum's Natural History Collections, including insects, marine invertebrates, fossils, fungi, plants, minerals and much more. The public helped to create fantastic modern and prehistoric scenes with beautifully coloured pictures.

Click here to find out more about the exhibition

O’r chwe deg naw o ysgolion o Gymru a gymerodd ran yn ymchwiliad Bylbiau’r Gwanwyn i Ysgolion eleni, dyfarnwyd y wobr gyntaf i Ysgol Clocaenog o Sir Ddinbych.

Dyma’r Gwyddonwyr Gwych lwcus yn ennill trip llawn hwyl i Amgueddfa Lechi Cymru lle dyma nhw’n dysgu am Stori Llechi, yn chwilio am fwystfilod bach ac yn adeiladu nythod anferth yn y chwarel!

Athro’r Ardd: “Dyma Ysgol Clogaenog yn gwneud gwaith gwych ar gyfer ymchwiliad Bylbiau’r Gwanwyn a nhw anfonodd y mwyaf o ddata tywydd o bob ysgol yng Nghymru! Roedd y gystadleuaeth yn gryf wrth i ysgolion wella eu sgiliau casglu ac anfon data bob blwyddyn. Roedd yn braf cael cwrdd â Gwyddonwyr Gwych Ysgol Clocaenog, a dyma ni’n cael llawer o hwyl yn adeiladu nythod ac yn esgus bod yn adar bach! Dyma ni hefyd yn dysgu llawer am Lechi, a dwi’n credu taw fy hoff foment i o’r diwrnod oedd hollti’r llechi!”

Os hoffech chi gymryd rhan yn y project hwn y tymor nesaf, llenwch y ffurflen gais ar-lein:

Bylbiau’r Gwanwyn i Ysgolion – Ffurflen Gais.

Ymhlith caffaeliadau newydd mis Mehefin oedd teledu lliw a theletestun Sony ‘Trinitron’ 14” gyda theclyn rholi o bell. Cynhyrchwyd y set gan Sony ym 1995 ym Mhencoed, Pen-y-bont. Edrychwch ar flog mis Rhagfyr i weld teledu arall a gyrhaeddodd yn ddiweddar.

Daw’r sampl hon o lechen o chwarel Maenofferen, Blaenau Ffestiniog. Byddai’r sampl yn cael ei hanfon i gwsmeriaid posibl i ddangos lliw a safon y garreg a gloddiwyd yn y chwarel. Mae sawl gwythïen lechi yng nghyffiniau Blaenau Ffestiniog a phob un ag enw unigryw; Llygad Newydd, Hen Lygad, Llygad Cefn, a Llygad Mochyn. Daw’r sampl hon o Lygad Cefn Chwarel Maenofferen.

Rydyn ni wedi derbyn casgliad hyfryd o 91 ffotograff yn rhodd, â’r mwyafrif yn dangos gwaith ailddatblygu’r Bwrdd Glo Cenedlaethol yng Nglofa Glyncorrwg yn y 1950au. Mae tair golygfa i’w gweld yma. Tynnwyd y ffotograff cyntaf ar 11 Medi 1951 cyn i’r gwaith ddechrau gan edrych ar hyd y dyffryn i’r gogledd.

Mae’r ddau lun nesaf yn dangos y gwaith ailadeiladu. Yn y cyntaf gwelwn nenbont gylch ar 1 Tachwedd 1955 ac yn yr ail mae gwaith yn mynd rhagddo ar offer pen y pwll ar 6 Chwefror 1957.

Ar 17 Mai 1965 achosodd llosgnwy ffrwydrad yng Nglofa Cambrian, Cwmclydach gan ladd 31 o lowyr. Roedd y pwll wrthi’n cael ei gau a llawer o’r gweithlu wedi’u symud, felly gallai llawer mwy fod wedi marw. Dyma glawr blaen rhaglen y gwasanaeth coffa a gynhaliwyd ar 17 Mai 2014, ac arno gwelwn yr offer pen pwll mewn gardd goffa.

Mark Etheridge

Curadur: Diwydiant a Thrafnidiaeth

Dilynwch ni ar twitter - @IndustryACNMW

Amongst this month’s new accessions was an aluminium prop withdrawer, known as a 'buller', manufactured by Parsons. It consists of handle and rack, and was used in coal mines for pulling out roof supports (as well as other tasks). This one is unusual in that it is made of aluminium for lightness. However the use of aluminium was later banned (because of its tendency to induce sparking) after the Horden Colliery explosion in 1953.

We have been donated the following four badges manufactured in 2014 that relate to the 1984/85 miners’ strike. These include two limited edition badges to commemorate the 30^th anniversary of the 1984/85 miners’ strike. The inscription on reverse reads “Forget not the / lessons of / our past”.

This badge with the slogan ‘Coal Not Dole’ issued by The Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign which included ex-miners, Trades Unionists, activists and others determined to get justice for miners.

The final badge in this collection is in the shape of a miners flame safety lamp. WAPC-NUM stands for Women Against Pit Closures - National Union of Mineworkers, and was manufactured for their 30th Anniversary.

We are currently working on documenting an important collection of approximately 150 film negatives taken by E. Emrys Jones in the 1950s and 1960s. The negatives show the slate industry in north Wales, concentrating on the Dinorwig slate quarry. Many images are of the Dinorwig quarry workshops (Gilfach Ddu) which is now the Welsh Slate Museum, and part of Amgueddfa Cymru. Below are three images taken from this collection.

A general view of Dinorwig Quarry, 1950. It shows the ‘Wellington’ section of Dinorwig Quarry, with the Muriau Shed in the foreground, and the Ceiliog Mawr in the background.

This view shows loaded slate wagons outside Gilfach Ddu (now the National Slate Museum) in the 1950s or early 1960s.

This group of quarrymen are probably at Dinorwig Quarry.

This model of an opencast coal truck was manufactured from South Wales anthracite coal. It is inscribed OPEN CAST / EXECUTIVE.

With 2014 being the centenary of the start of the First World War it is poignant that we have acquired a collection of photographs and documents relating to Captain Anthony Starkey of Bristol. Capt. Starkey was master of the S.S. Torrington which was torpedoed and sunk off the Scilly Isles in April 1917. 34 members of the crew were killed, and Capt. Starkey was the sole survivor. He was taken from the ship and held as prisoner aboard the U-boat for 15 days. He was then held in four different prisoner of war camps in Germany (including Brandenburg, Holminden and Strohenmoor).

This view shows the S.S. Torrington with an inset portrait of Capt. Starkey.

This photograph shows Capt. Starkey during his internment in Germany. It will have been taken in one of the four prisoner of wars camps in Germany that he was held in.

Mark Etheridge

Curatorial Assistant (Industry)

Follow us on Twitter - @IndustryACNMW

Llongyfarchiadau i enillwyr y gystadleuaeth Darlunio Cennin Pedr 2014! Dyma’u darluniau botanegol gwych.

• 1af: Abbey – Ysgol Eglwys Plwyf Coppull
• 2il: Louise – Ysgol Gynradd SS Philip a James CE (Pinc 3)
• 3ydd: Amelie – Ysgol Gynradd Stanford in the Vale CE

Roeddwn i’n chwilio am ddarluniau botanegol – sef darluniau o blanhigion mewn arddull wyddonol. Yn ogystal â thynnu llun gwych, roedd angen labelu gwahanol rannau’r blodyn yn glir hefyd.

Roedd pob un o’r darluniau a dderbyniais i yn wych, felly gallwch chi eu gweld nhw i gyd ar y wefan! Da iawn bawb.

Gallwch chi weld y darluniau i gyd yma.

Diolch yn fawr,

Athro’r Ardd