Casgliadau Arlein

Copper ingot smelted by the Cape Copper Company of Briton Ferry Copper Works and recovered from the wreck of the S.S. ST. GEORGE. The St. George was wrecked off St. Agnes Head, North Cornwall on the 28 November 1882, outward bound from Swansea for Nantes, France, with '500 tons of coal, 100 tons of copper ingots'.

[Description developed in collaboration with members of Chai & Chat (Swansea CVS), July 2024] Copper ingot smelted at Briton Ferry Copper Works, near Swansea, owned by the London-based Cape Copper Company. Smelting is a process involving heating and melting ore to obtain the metal it contains. The ingot was recovered from the wreck of the SS St. George. The ship was wrecked off St. Agnes Head, Cornwall on 28th November 1882, outward bound from Swansea to Nantes with 500 tons of coal and 100 tons of copper ingots. Some of the ore for this ingot came from mines owned by the Cape Copper Company in the Nama-kwa/Namaqualand region of Cape Colony, in modern-day South Africa. Nama-kwa/Namaqualand is the home of the Nama or Khoekhoe people, who had used copper prior to European colonisation of their lands. Cape Colony was colonised by the Dutch from 1652 and by Britain in the years 1795 - 1803 and 1806 - 1910. Cape Copper Company owned the mines of Nababeep, Springbok, O’okiep and Spectakel. African labourers, both local and migrant people, made up the largest proportion of workers employed at the mines. They mainly worked above ground, performing work such as breaking and sorting rocks. Men and women worked side by side, with women often carrying their children while working. Below ground, it was mostly British workers mining the ore, working alongside a smaller number of African workers. Cape Copper Company recruited experienced white British copper miners and paid them more than African workers. ‘CCC’ stands for Cape Copper Company, while ‘BS’ stands for ‘best selected’, meaning the ingot was of high quality.

[Disgrifiad wedi'u datblygu ar y cyd ag aelodau Chai & Chat (CGG Abertawe), Gorffennaf 2024] Ingot copr a fwyndoddwyd yng Ngweithfeydd Copr Llansawel ger Abertawe, gwaith oedd yn eiddo i'r Cape Copper Company o Lundain. Mwyndoddi yw'r broses o boethi a thoddi mwyn er mwyn rhyddhau'r metel ynddo. Cafodd yr ingot ei ganfod yn llongddrylliad yr SS St.George. ⁠Cafodd y llong ei dryllio ger Penrhyn Santes Agnes, Cernyw, ar 28 Tachwedd 1882 ar y ffordd o Abertawe i Nantes gyda 500 tunnell o lo a 100 tunnell o ingotau copr. Daeth peth o'r mwyn ar gyfer yr ingot hwn o fwyngloddiau'r Cape Copper Company yn rhanbarth Nama-kwa/Namaqualand y Cape Colony, yn Ne Affrica heddiw. Nama-kwa/Namaqualand yw cartref pobl Nama, neu Khoekhoe, fyddai wedi defnyddio copr cyn i Ewropeaid drefedigaeth eu tiroedd. Cafodd Cape Colony ei threfedigaethu gan yr Iseldiroedd yn 1652, a Phrydain rhwng 1795-1803 ac 1806-1910. Y Cape Copper Company oedd perchnogion mwynfeydd Nababeep, Springbok, O’okiep a Spectakel. Llafurwyr o Affrica, pobl leol a mewnfudwyr, oedd mwyafrif y gweithwyr yn y mwynfeydd hyn. Bydden nhw fel arfer yn gweithio ar yr wyneb, yn torri a didoli cerrig. Byddai dynion a menywod yn gweithio ochr yn ochr, yn aml gan gario'u plant wrth weithio. Danddaear, gweithwyr o Brydain fyddai'n cloddio'r mwyn fel arfer, ochr yn ochr ag ychydig o weithwyr o Affrica. Byddai'r Cape Copper Company yn cyflogi mwyngloddwyr profiadol, gwyn o Brydain ac yn eu talu nhw'n well na'u cydweithwyr o Affrica. Ystyr 'CCC' yw Cape Copper Company a 'BS' yw 'best selected', sy'n golygu bod yr ingot o'r safon uchaf.