Casgliadau Arlein

Ceramic mug celebrating the coming of age of Lewis Frederick Davis Esq. of Ferndale on 20 February 1912. A portrait of Lewis is on the front, with inscription on back. One of these mugs was given to schoolchildren in the Ferndale area at a commemorative tea party.

Lewis was the great grandson of David Davis (‘Blaengwawr’) of the Ferndale Collieries who had been a draper and grocer in Merthyr who became a pioneer of the Welsh coal industry. At its height, David Davis and Sons operated nine coal mines and was the biggest employer in the Rhondda Valleys (around 10,000 were employed in 1912). Local workmen and tradespeople raised funds to recognise Lewis Davis’s Coming of Age and the birth of his child in 1912. He was presented with a solid silver crib and associated baby feeding items, also in solid silver. In addition, a commemorative tea party was held for schoolchildren in the Ferndale area who were each given one of these special mugs. According to the local newspapers, over 7,000 children were catered for.