National Library of Wales
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A Library for Wales and the World 🏴 | Siarad Cymraeg? Dilynwch 👉 @LLGCymru
Aberystwyth
Joined December 2009
The National Library of Wales is excited to launch the consultation on its Strategy for 2025-2030 and is inviting feedback from the public and its partners. Full consultation document and response form on our website. 🔗
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Happy #OwainGlyndwrDay. Celebrate by learning more about the letter sent by Glyndŵr, now known as the Pennal Letter, to Charles VI King of France requesting assistance in his rebellion. 🔗
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Today marks 58 years since the Aberfan disaster. A tragedy that took so many young lives, yet showed the strength of a community united in grief. ©Philip Townsend Archive
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Matchday two has arrived and football mania has certainly reached the Library. Pob lwc today @Cymru!. #YWalGoch #TogetherStronger #ArBenYByd
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This is Krish. He travelled from London to Aberystwyth to read a single book which he couldn’t find anywhere else. This is a photo of him with a manuscript from 1350 containing stories from the Mabinogi. Best of luck with the podcast Krish!.
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📖Plygain is a traditional Welsh Christmas service which takes place in the church during the Christmas period. This Plygain book, written by Thomas Evans from c.1618-1622 might possibly be the smallest Welsh manuscript in existence.
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The National Library is home to the only remaining complete copy of the first book to be printed in Welsh in 1546. Unlike most other books it has no title and is known only by its opening words ‘In this book’: #LibraryLoversMonth #PlaceToDiscover
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🗺️Humphrey Llwyd’s 'Cambriae Typus' is the earliest printed map to show Wales as a separate region. Published in 1573, it’s one of a million and a half sheets of maps, charts and plans held in the National Library. 🔗
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The detailed, colourful #map by Idris Mathias portrays the natural resources of the lower Teifi valley between Newcastle Emlyn and Cardigan Bay. Drawn on a single roll of cartridge paper, it is sixty feet in length and took nearly 17 years to complete. 🔗
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This map of Wales, painted by Welsh-French-Quebecer artist @triaglog is far more than a conventional atlas. Titled Gwlad y Gân (Land of Song), the characters, creatures and farmhouses are all taken from local folk tales, myths and legends. Which is your favourite myth?
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This map of Wales, painted by Welsh-French-Quebecer artist @triaglog far more than a conventional atlas. The characters, creatures and farmhouses are all taken from local folk tales, myths and legends. The image is on display at The #Riverside Gallery, Haverfordwest.
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📚The National Library is home to the only remaining complete copy of the first book to be printed in Welsh in 1546. Unlike most other books it has no title and is known only by its opening words ‘In this book’: . 🔗
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📣We’re pleased to announce that the Reading Room will reopen with a limited service from 12 April. You will need to book your visit beforehand and it will be possible to do this from 6 April onwards. Visit our website for full details:
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A hundred-year-old Peace Petition signed by almost 400,000 Welsh Women on its way to the National Library from the United States. 👇Read more. 🔗
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🎉Happy New Year🎉. Celebrating the Old New Year in Cwm Gwaun, 1961
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The treasures in the Library reflect life in Wales through the ages - from the 13thC Black Book of Carmarthen, the earliest complete manuscript written in Welsh, to Prof. Sue Williams' (@sue_nomorepink) ‘Bare Red Books’ artwork created during #lockdown .#LibraryLoversMonth
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👢Have you ever kicked the bar on the prom while visiting Aberystwyth? . While the origin of this tradition is unknown, kicking the bar is said to bring good luck! . 📸Students kicking the bar in Aberystwyth by Geoff Charles, 1950.
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🥕🥦Did you know that the Library had allotments on its grounds as this aerial photograph from 1932 shows? They were used by the Library staff to grow their own veg during their lunchbreak. Image © Crown Copyright: @RCAHMWales: Aerofilms Collection.#GardenWeek #PhotoFriday
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Parchment and paper were not exclusive writing surfaces during the Middle Ages. This slate is from the former abbey of Strata Florida and etched on them were Welsh and Latin words, crude images, and some lines of Welsh poetry. (Date believed late 15th century.)
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📢ANNOUNCEMENT!.The Library is excited to announce on St. David's Day a brand new development! A selection of our digital collections are now available on the @googlearts & Culture platform Learn more here:
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Gwerful Mechain was a medieval Welsh poet and she’s considered to be the only female medieval Welsh poet from whom a substantial body of work is known to have survived. #WomenOfWales #WomensHistoryMonth
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The Book of Taliesin from the #Peniarth collection includes some of the earliest poems written in Welsh, many of which have been attributed to the poet Taliesin. It includes poems of praise to Urien Rheged and his son Owain ab Urien. Browse the manuscript:
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The Library is very sad to hear of the death of the acclaimed artist Margaret Jones. Her works are amongst some of the treasures held in our collections. We extend our sincerest condolences to the family.
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Did you know that there are approximately 40,000 manuscripts at the Library and together they form the most important collection of Welsh manuscripts in the world?. Almost all are hand-written, with many illustrations with painted decoration. Learn more 👉
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🇺🇦Our thoughts are with the people of Ukraine and we’re lighting the Library building as a token of our solidarity and support.
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❄️Kyffin Williams painted many scenes depicting the harshness of winter as seen here in ‘Farmer and dog in the snow’.
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Image of the Crucifixion from the The Vaux Passional. 🔗
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#OnThisDay in 1406, Owain Glyndŵr sent a letter, now known as the Pennal Letter, to Charles VI King of France requesting assistance for help in his rebellion against English rule.
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Very sad news that Wales has lost one of its literary giants, Emyr Humphreys. The Library extends our deepest sympathies to the family
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The National Library of Wales is home to some of the nation’s greatest treasures. This month we're proudly celebrating #LibraryLoversMonth & everything that the Library preserves and inspires through its collections, sharing some of these treasures along the way #PlaceToDiscover
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Do you live in Wales? Ever wondered who used to own the land where you live? What was it used for? Take a look at at the Tithe maps of Wales on our Places of Wales website and find out
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Ellis Humphrey Evans (Hedd Wyn) won the @eisteddfod chair #onthisday in 1917. Sadly, Evans had been killed in action six weeks earlier at the Third Battle of Ypres. The empty chair at the Eisteddfod was draped in a black sheet. 🔗
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❄️Another image to the winter collection. ‘Farmer and dog in the snow’ by Kyffin Williams
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🗺️Have you heard of Humphrey Llwyd? The man quite literally put Wales on the map! Cambriae Typus (sadly published after his death) is the earliest published map of Wales as a separate country from the rest of Great Britain. Learn more 👉
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Some of the nation’s oldest & most valuable manuscripts are free to view from where ever you are thanks to our work digitising the Peniarth Manuscripts collection. 128 items have already been digitised & the number continues to grow: .#LibraryLoversMonth
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#OnThisDay 60 years ago, @Cymdeithas held their first protest, Aberystwyth town centre and Trefechan bridge, protesting for the Welsh language to be given an official status. Photojournalist Geoff Charles was there to capture it all. 🔗
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📢ANNOUNCEMENT - REOPENING OUR READING ROOM. We are thrilled to announce that one of our reading rooms will re-open from Tuesday, 1 September 2020. Full press release.👉
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A Welsh tradition, the 'noson lawen' (entertainment evening) is an evening of light entertainment, featuring music, humour and storytelling. This picture by Geoff Charles shows a 'noson lawen' in a Pentrefoelas home in 1961, and is available to see at The #Riverside Gallery.
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👢Have you ever kicked the bar on the prom while visiting Aberystwyth? . While the origin of this tradition is unknown, kicking the bar is said to bring good luck! . 📸Students kicking the bar in Aberystwyth by Geoff Charles, 1950.
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SALEM HAS ARRIVED! 😍. The Salem painting has arrived and can now be see in our Peniarth Room. A special thanks to Rich, and our @NLWExhibition team for overseeing its arrival!
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📚Did you know that The National Library is home to the only remaining complete copy of the first book to be printed in Welsh in 1546. Unlike most other books it has no title and is known only by its opening words ‘Yny lhyvyr hwnn' (In this book).
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Our #Peniarth collection, which includes 560 volumes, is being digitised. Come face to face with some of the nation's treasures on this page: #LibrariesWeek
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The Black Book of Carmarthen is believed to be the earliest surviving complete manuscript written in the Welsh language. It was designated one of the 'Four Ancient Books of Wales' by William Forbes Skene (1809-92). 🔗 #ManuscriptMonday #medieval #history
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Tomorrow, on our patron saint's day, we will begin a new long term digital campaign - #StoryofWales. Our hope is to introduce snippets of Welsh history, well and lesser known events, through our collections, in the form of text, videos, galleries and even 3D digital items.
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Megan Lloyd George was the first Welsh woman to be elected as member of parliament #onthisday 30 May 1929, representing Anglesey as a Liberal. Having served in Westminster continuously for 30 years she then joined the Labour Party, winning a seat in Carmarthen in 1957.
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An image from Thomas Pennant’s collection: A Tour in Wales. 🧐🔍But where in Wales is this?. #MysteryMonday
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🏴An incredible day at the Library as the Peace Petition returns home to Wales. An emotional day for many who played an important role in its return
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Calling all Swifties!. Did you hear the reference to Dylan Thomas in the new album?. Who was he?. “To begin at the beginning…”. 🧵
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The Book of Llandaff is one of Wales’s earliest ecclesiastical manuscripts and covers the early history of the diocese of Llandaff . It also throws light on the state and position of the church in one area of Wales soon after the Norman Conquest. 🔗
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📸 Did you know that the Library is home to what is believed to be the earliest Welsh photograph in existence. The whole-plate daguerreotype of Margam Castle taken by the Rev. Calvert Richard Jones was taken on 9th March 1841. #NationalCameraDay
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🗺️The detailed, colourful map by Idris Mathias portrays the natural resources of the lower Teifi valley between Newcastle Emlyn and Cardigan Bay. Drawn on a single roll of cartridge paper, it is sixty feet in length and took nearly 17 years to complete. 🔗
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#OnThisDay in 1406, Owain Glyndŵr sent a letter, now known as the Pennal Letter, to Charles VI King of France requesting assistance for help in his rebellion against English rule. Learn more about the letter and its significance here👇. 🔗
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Best wishes to Pedr ap Llwyd who starts his new role today as Chief Executive and Librarian of the National Library of Wales.
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Legend has it that the mountain Cader Idris was a seat for a giant called Idris. As the story goes, anyone who sleeps on the mountain will awake a poet or a madman #folklorethursday
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‘The Book of Aneirin’ is one of the Four Ancient Books of Wales. It is a relatively small medieval manuscript of 38 pages containing an unique text of what may be the earliest surviving Welsh literature. 🔗 #manuscript #literature #medieval #history
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The Library will be lit blue tonight! A big thank you to all NHS staff 👏
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🎼‘Yma o Hyd’ by @dafyddiwan is now an iconic part of the culture of Welsh football. Did you know that the original lyrics, written by Dafydd Iwan himself is kept here in the Library?. 🔗 #TogetherStronger #ArBenYByd #YWalGoch #YmaOHyd
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Did you know that several items from the @britishlibrary were housed in the Library’s secret tunnel during #WW2, as it provided a refuge from bombing raids?. Items stored included paintings by Rembrandt, drawings by Leonardo da Vinci and the Magna Carta.
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SQUAD ANNOUNCEMENT. Here's the National Library’s starting XV to face the English. Would you make any changes? . #SixNationsRugby
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When these cards were designed in the 1670s, Wales and England consisted of 52 counties - perfect for a standard deck. Note how Pembrokeshire is wrongly described as sharing a border with Flintshire! You can see them for yourself at The #Riverside Gallery, Haverfordwest.
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A warm welcome for @LauraMcAllister tonight as she gives the Welsh Political Archive's annual lecture titled "Reason not rancour: a route to a better Wales". Themes include leadership, a confident Wales, and a new contract between the public and the state.
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⚓The #Mimosa, the ship carrying the first Welsh emigrants to South America reached #Patagonia, #OnThisDay in 1865. On board the ship was Joseph Seth Jones, who kept a diary of the voyage, which has now been digitised. 🔗
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🗺️TITHE MAPS OF WALES🗺️. Did you know that our Tithe Maps of #Wales website allows you to search and browse Welsh tithe maps and related documents for FREE? A very valuable resource for local and family #historians! What will you discover? . 🔗
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What’s in the #WalesBroadcastArchive? More than half a million clips covering more than a century of broadcasting in Wales from @BBCWales, @ITVWales & @S4C covering all aspects of Welsh life. Relive history.
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Our manuscript of the Laws of Hywel Dda, which forms part of the #Peniarth collection is special for two reasons, it's larger than usual, and in Latin not Welsh, but most of all it includes illustrations of the King and his officials. See for yourself:
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For World Photography Day, we're taking you behind the camera to celebrate four of Wales' pioneering photographers. First up: Mary Dillwyn 1/7
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📚The Book of Llandaff is one of Wales’s earliest ecclesiastical manuscripts and covers the early history of the diocese of Llandaff . It also throws light on the state and position of the church in one area of Wales soon after the Norman Conquest.
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"The letter made Wales an independent player in Europe's political games and placed the nation at the centre of the greatest events of the day". On #OwainGlyndwrDay see a 3D version of the Pennal Letter, and learn more about his ambition. #StoryOfWales
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Did you know that Paul Peter Piech was an artist from Brooklyn (Ukrainian parents) and that he was completely enchanted by Welsh culture? You can now delve into his literary world via our online exhibition on the @pplscollection website.
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🥳Happy new year! . No, we're not two weeks late - the Welsh new year was traditionally celebrated on January 13th. 📷 Celebrating the Old New Year in Cwm Gwaun, 1961, by Geoff Charles.
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Library with a view. Not a bad view from the front door! . Come and have a look yourself. #Aberystwyth #SeaView #Library
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📜Another milestone for the Welsh Women’s Peace Petition project as all pages are digitized. 🔗
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The #Senghenydd colliery disaster happened #onthisday in 1913, when an explosion at the Universal pit tragically killed 439 men and boys. It is the worst mining disaster in the UK. 🔗
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Would you be brave enough to venture to one of Ceredigion’s lonely beaches in moonlight in the 18th Century? Ceredigion was infamous for its smuggling – from salt to Siôn Cwilt’s contraband and even luring ships onto rocks to plunder them. Ceredigion beaches were dangerous places
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🎨Kyffin Williams was born #OnThisDay in 1918 in Llangefni. He is widely regarded as the defining artist of Wales during the 20th century. A significant body of his work is kept here. Which one is your favourite? 👉
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🗺️Humphrey Llwyd’s 'Cambriae Typus' is the earliest printed map to show Wales as a separate region. Published in 1573, it’s one of a million and a half sheets of maps, charts and plans held in the National Library. 🔗 #MapMonday
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🌊The Royal Pier at Aberystwyth is Wales’ oldest pier having opened in 1865. Its Gothic-style glass domed entrance pavilion that we nowadays associate with the pier was built in 1896. This image by J. Newman & Co in ca. 1865 shows how the pier originally looked.
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Our digitisation work continues behind the scenes and a number of new items and collections are now available to view from home on the Library’s website and/or the catalogue. Find out what's new in our latest blog. 🔗
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Is this the most remote chapel in Wales? This is Soar y Mynydd in the parish of Llanddewi Brefi, Ceredigion. The chapel is high in the mountains above Tregaron #WildArchives
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Could this be one of the earliest photographs of a Snowman? Image by Mary Dilwyn c1853 #nlwchristmas
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To mark 100 yrs since the vote for women here's the history of Megan Lloyd George (1902-1966), the first female MP in Wales. Born on 22 April 1902, she was the youngest daughter of David and Margaret Lloyd George, and was largely brought up in 11 and 10 Downing St. #votes100 1/5
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Do you live in Wales? Ever wondered who used to own the land where you live? What was it used for? Take a look at the Tithe maps of Wales on our Places of Wales website and find out
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Peniarth MS 109 is a volume of cywyddau by Lewys Glyn Cothi, one of the most notable Welsh bards of the 15th century. Written in the bard’s own hand, it contains 106 poems praising numerous Welsh noblemen. 🔗 #ManuscriptMonday
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The Library is very saddened to hear of the passing of the former-librarian, Professor Brynley F. Roberts. As the Librarian between 1985 and 1994 he was an inspirational and discerning leader and a very special person. We send our sincere condolences to his family.
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Legend has it there is a drowned land beneath the sea in Cardigan Bay. Known as Cantre'r Gwaelod (The Sunken Hundred), in the earliest version of the legend, in The Black Book of Carmarthen, the land is known as Maes Gwyddno. #findyourepic (thread 1/5)
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Congratulations to Sally McInnes, the Library’s former Head of Unique Collections for being awarded an MBE in the King’s Birthday Honours for her services to Documentary History. Sally worked for 34 years for the Library doing invaluable work enriching our collections.
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📢ANNOUNCEMENT📢. As part of our plans to renew and bring a new lease of life to the Library building we have been working on a new design. We’re very happy with the result!🏴🎨
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Our NEW website, Places of Wales is live! You can now search the tithe maps of Wales from anywhere.
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Did this little piggy go to market? He certainly featured in the Latin manuscript of the Laws of Hywel Dda! Learn more about illustrations and decorations in medieval Welsh manuscripts in our new blog post:👇.
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Congratulations to our Chief Executive and Librarian Linda Tomos for being selected as one of the most inspiring #100WelshWomen at a special ceremony at the Senedd today @WENWales
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Exciting news! We're pleased to announce that the first copies of A Repertory of Welsh Manuscripts and Scribes, c.800–c.1800 have arrived and they are magnificent!.@NLWArchives @Ganolfan @llawysgrifau . #WelshManuscripts
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The Library is currently working to digitise all 561 manuscripts of the Peniarth Collection and making them available online; join Maredudd ap Huw tomorrow as he looks at this remarkable collection, reviewing where have we reached and what is to come:
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