A ninnau bron ar derfyn 3 mis cyntaf @DyddiadurKate, mae un ‘cymeriad’ wedi chwarae rhan blaenllaw iawn yng nghofnodion yr wythnosau diwethaf sy’n haeddu bach o sylw ar y blog – y peiriant dyrnu. Rhwng Ionawr a Mawrth 1915, bu’r peiriant hwn ar grwydr i sawl ffermdy gerllaw cartref Kate a’i theulu. Ynghyd â mynychu’r capel, corddi a chrasu, hynt a helynt y peiriant dyrnu yw un o brif weithgarwch y dyddiadur hyd yma. Ond diolch amdano. Arferion amaethyddol fel hyn sy’n gwreiddio’r dyddiadur o fewn cymuned a chyfnod.

18 Ionawr – Yr injan ddyrnu yn Llwyniolyn

23 Ionawr – Ellis yn Tynybryn gyda’r peiriant dyrnu

30 Ionawr – Y peiriant dyrnu yn Penycefn

2 Mawrth – Yr injan ddyrnu yn y Derwgoed

4 Mawrth – Ellis yn mynd i Fedwarian at y peiriant dyrnu

Yma yn Sain Ffagan, mae sawl un mwy cymwys na fi i drafod peiriannau dyrnu. Un o fy mhrif ddiddordebau i fel curadur yw hanes prosesau casglu – y dulliau hynny a ddefnyddwyd gan Iorwerth Peate, Ffransis Payne, Minwel Tibbott ac eraill i roi hanes Cymru ar gof a chadw. Mewn blog blaenorol, soniais am waith arloesol yr Amgueddfa ym maes cofnodi hanes llafar – bu Kate Rowlands ei hun yn destun sawl cyfweliad. Dull poblogaidd arall a fabwysiadwyd gan yr Amgueddfa i gasglu data oedd holiaduron a llyfrau ateb. Roedd y rhain yn cael eu gyrru at unigolion o fewn plwyfi yng Nghymru yn gofyn am wybodaeth benodol ynglyn ag arferion eu milltir sgwâr. Mae casgliad helaeth ohonynt yma yn trafod amrywiol bynciau – meddygyniaethau gwerin, arferion tymhorol ac ati. I’r un perwyl, mae gennym hefyd bentwr o lythyrau ac ysgrifau.

Tra’n chwilota am ddeunydd yn yr archif o ardal y Sarnau, Cefnddwysarn a bro @DyddiadurKate, fe ddes i o hyd i ysgrif gan Mary Winifred Jones o’r Hendre, Cwm Main. Bydd mwy ar y blog cyn hir am y teulu hwn – mae tad a brodyr Mary yn cael eu crybwyll sawl gwaith yn y dyddiadur. Ysgrif yw hon sy’n disgrifio ffotograff o ddiwrnod dyrnu ar fferm Pentre Tai’n y Cwm, Cefnddwysarn. Gallwch weld y llun a’r ysgrif fan hyn. Tybed os mai hwn yw’r peiriant dyrnu y mae Kate yn sôn amdano?

Ar fuarth fferm Seimon Davies Pentre Tai yn Cwm Cefnddwysarn y tynwyd y darlun hwn. Perchenog y peiriant oedd Morgan Hughes Bryniau Cynlas ar ol hyny. Bu y peiriant yn gyfrwyn i roi gwaith i amryw amaethwyr bychain yn ystod y gaeaf pan oedd ychydig yn dod i fewn am fod ganddo ychwaneg nag un peiriant yr oedd yn rhaid cael dau ddyn i ganlyn pob un sef y gyrwr ar porthwr…

Yr hyn sy’n dod yn amlwg wrth ddarllen atgofion Mary Jones, ac yn wir dyddiadur Kate Rowlands, yw pwysigrwydd cydweithio o fewn cymuned amaethyddol – cymdogion a ffrindiau, hen ac ifanc, yn cynorthwyo’i gilydd.

On 19th February, I joined science curator Kate Mortimer-Jones to study marine life on the shores around Berwick-upon-Tweed in Northumberland, not far from the border with Scotland. While Kate hunted for magalonid marine bristleworms, I looked at seaweeds. Much of England’s east coast is not particularly suitable for seaweeds; however, the rocky shores around Northumberland form plenty of ideal habitats.

It was early in the year, so I wasn’t expecting to see the seaweeds that die down for the winter (similar to annual and perennial flowering plants). I was also expecting a lower diversity here when compared with Welsh shores due to the colder climate. Species with south-western distributions that prefer a relatively warmer climate, such as Brown Tuning Fork Weed (Bifurcaria bifurcata), relatively common in Wales, do not grow as far north and east as Northumberland. With climate change, however, there is always the possibility that these southern species may expand their range further north. This is more likely for non-native species that are in the process of establishing in the UK, so I was on the look-out.

There are some seaweeds that only grow in the north of the UK, such as the Northern Tooth Weed (Odonthalia dentata) which is absent from Wales. I wanted to become familiar with these in the field rather than just seeing them as pressed specimens in our collections. It’s always exciting to find a species for the first time in the wild too.

Despite the time of year and the north-eastern location, the very sheltered shore was an excellent one for seaweeds and I documented a wide range of species. While it was important to collect specimens as a permanent back-up for records and for future research, I had to remind myself not to collect too many as they take a long time to process and I didn’t want to be up until the ‘wee hours’.

Preservation of the seaweeds involves several techniques depending on future use. To preserve the seaweed’s DNA for molecular analysis, the seaweed needs to be dried as quickly as possible in a bag with silica gel. Combining DNA characters with morphological ones (such as shape and colour) is sometimes the only way to be sure of an identification. To preserve 3D structure and some microscopic details well, a sample is placed in a tube with formaldehyde for fixation. Finally, the traditional and still most effective method for overall preservation is to press and dry the specimen, unfortunately this is the most time consuming process. You float each seaweed out onto paper, place nappy liners on top (a crucial part to stop the seaweed sticking to the paper above it), then place a piece of blotting paper underneath and on top and put it into a plant press. At least once a day, I swapped the wet blotting paper for dry and made sure the wet paper dried out quickly enough to be used in the next cycle. A lengthy procedure, but worth it for excellently preserved specimens that will be invaluable for future research.

I had access to a microscope with a camera attached and so was able to take close-up images of the seaweeds while they were fresh. These will be useful when looking at dried specimens back in the museum. Characters such as colour and 3D structure can be altered in the drying process, but will show up well in these photos. I also took lots of photos with a waterproof camera (it is too terrifying to take a non-waterproof camera onto the shore!) and I will share some more of these in my next blog.

Dust, dust, dust, where ever you look! Museums are dusty places - dust is on top of shelves and underneath cupboards, it covers objects, books, specimens... Keeping our heritage in tip-top condition is a constant battle against dust.

What is dust? Dust in the atmosphere is made up of lots of tiny particles of soil, pollen, pollution, volcanic eruptions etc. Inside buildings, such as museums and your own office or home, dust is mainly bits of human (and pet) hair and skin, textile and paper fibres.

Why is dust a problem? Fresh dust, in small amounts, is not a problem other than making objects look unsightly. Over time, however, dust has a tendency to become really sticky. How often do you clean the tops of your kitchen cupboards? Only when you move houses, like most people? Then you'll know how difficult it is to remove the dust.

In addition, dust it hygroscopic - it absorbs moisture from the air. And because dust is really nutritious - just think of all those yummy skin cells - once it gets damp it is the PERFECT substrate for mould. Mould is really bad. Mould is responsible for damage to an awful lot of museum objects across the world.

Dust also attracts pest insects. They hide in dust, sometimes live of it – or the mould that grows on dust – and generally thrive in environments that are dusty, messy and neglected. There are some insects that cause a lot of damage to museum collections.

So we keep dust at bay in the museum because we want to maintain your heritage in as good a condition as possible. We are fortunate to have the support of some brilliant volunteers to help us keep the collections clean. Rachel, Vicky, Meredith and Elizabete - all students at Cardiff University's Department of Archaeology and Conservation - have just helped us clean one of the Library stores and one of the Art stores. Thank you to the volunteers for their help keeping dust, mould and insects under control in the museum.

Wyna yw un o amseroedd pwysicaf a phrysuraf y flwyddyn ar y fferm. Mae’n golygu oriau hir, ddydd a nos, yn gwylio dros, ac yn gofalu am y defaid, i wneud yn siwr bod eu ŵyn yn cyrraedd yn ddiogel ac yn goroesi yn y diwrnodau cyntaf. Mae ŵyn yn ffynhonnell bwysig o arian oherwydd gellir eu gwerthu ar gyfer eu cig, ac ar gyfer stoc newydd i’r ddiadell.

Mae cadw defaid yn rhan sylweddol o amaethyddiaeth yng Nghymru oherwydd eu bod yn gallu ymdopi yn dda â’r ucheldir, yr hinsawdd gwlyb ac â thir gwael. Gall defaid oroesi a ffynnu ar laswellt tiroedd uchel ac isel Cymru. Gellir cynhyrchu gwlân, cig, llaeth, crwyn a gwêr ar gyfer canhwyllau o ddefaid, a gellir defnyddio eu tail i wrteithio’r tir.

Mae’n debygol mai defaid bach, brown Soay oedd y defaid cyntaf yng Nghymru. Daethant yma gyda ffermwyr Neolithic tua 6 mil o flynyddoedd yn ôl. Daeth y Rhufeiniad â defaid o safon uwch, gyda gwynebau gwyn a gwlân main. Cadwyd y defaid ar gyfer eu gwlân yn unig. Roedd gan ffermwyr Rhufeinig enw da am gynhyrchu gwlân o safon. Trwy groesi y defaid gwyneb gwyn gyda’r defaid Soay cynhyrchwyd defaid â gwyneb brown golau, hynafiaid y defaid Cymreig gwydn sydd wedi byw ar ucheldiroedd Cymru ers dros ddwy fil o flynyddoedd.

Erbyn y Canol Oesoedd mae’n debyg bod defaid yn cael eu cadw ar gyfer eu gwlân a’u llaeth yn hytrach na’u cig. Bu gwlân yn goruchafu tan y Chwyldro Diwydiannol ond o ganlyniad i’r tŵf yn y boblogaeth yn y ddeunawfed ganrif cynyddodd y galw am gig.

Cig oedd prif gynnyrch defaid ac ŵyn yn yr ugeinfed ganrif, yn gwerthu am llawer mwy o arian na gwlân. Heddiw, cynhyrchu ŵyn tewion yw prif incwm llawer o ffermydd Cymru. Yn 2013 roedd allforion cig oen Cymreig werth £154.7 miliwn. Y cwsmer tramor mwyaf yw Ffrainc, ac yna’r Almaen. Roedd 9.74 miliwn o ddefaid ac ŵyn yng Nghymru yn 2014.

Welcome to Umberto Fiordaliso, a postgraduate student from the University of Florence who will be working at the museum for 3 months with the Erasmus Programme, which helps students to study abroad. Umberto has previous experience working on Mediterranean molluscs and will be curating the marine molluscs collected by Monterosato, part of our extensive shell collection. He will be working closely with Anna Holmes and Harriet Wood in the Invertebrate Biodiversity section to produce a published handlist on this historical collection.