German Writers in Wales
Bridging Cultures with Archives
In June 2023, the Richard Burton Archives was contacted by Theresa Ogbekhiulu, Project Lead for Swansea University’s Academy for Inclusivity about supporting Bridging Cultures – an exciting new project with the aim to educate, celebrate, and inform students and staff about acceptance and tolerance of people from different cultural backgrounds. The project included a combination…Continue Reading Bridging Cultures with Archives
Philosophy, Archives and Books
Over the summer our Archives Assistant Sarah Thompson looked in more detail at the book collection of philosopher Rush Rhees – as well as the printed page the volumes contain unique annotations and additional material, that could be of value and interest to researchers. There are over 250 books within this collection, complimenting the archival…Continue Reading Philosophy, Archives and Books
The Motive and the Cue
In April 2023, the play The Motive and the Cue opened at the National Theatre in London. Written by Jack Thorne, and directed by Sir Sam Mendes, the play explores the relationship between Richard Burton and John Gielgud during the making of the Broadway production of Hamlet in 1964. During the Covid-19 lockdown, Sir Sam…Continue Reading The Motive and the Cue
A personal perspective – cataloguing the papers of Marian Henry Jones
Archives Assistant Stephanie Basford-Morris reflects on cataloguing her first archive collection, as part of her course in Archive Administration at Aberystwyth University. From the start of my course this had been an assignment I was really looking forward to, and it certainly didn’t disappoint. I was lucky with the collection itself, which is a personal…Continue Reading A personal perspective – cataloguing the papers of Marian Henry Jones
A Personal Vest : Running at Swansea in the 1930s
With the TCS London Marathon taking place this Sunday on the 23rd April, we thought we’d rummage through our sporting collections and discover the history of this old 1930s running vest! The vest is white cotton with forest green stripes, embellished with a red dragon embroidered badge. Its label advertises that it was from a…Continue Reading A Personal Vest : Running at Swansea in the 1930s
Christmas cards from the Coalfield
Assistant Archivist Felicity Grey looks at the Christmas cards held at the Richard Burton Archives as a means of exploring our collections relating to the South Wales Coalfield. …Continue Reading Christmas cards from the Coalfield
Gower Through Time
An archival collection documenting the history of Gower has been excitedly uncovered by Archives Assistant (and Gower native!) Sarah Thompson. The Chapman collection offers a unique insight into Gower through time. Spanning over half a century (1900-1955), the Chapman collection was created by the Antiquarian Donald Le Cronier Chapman. Chapman was a Lloyd’s agent for…Continue Reading Gower Through Time
What next for Digital Preservation? 3 Takeaways from iPres 2022
In September, delegates from across the globe travelled to Glasgow for the 2022 iPres conference on digital preservation. Thanks to the generous support of the Digital Preservation Coalition, our Assistant Archivist Simon Mackley was able to attend the conference and find out more about the latest developments in the field. In this blog post, Simon…Continue Reading What next for Digital Preservation? 3 Takeaways from iPres 2022
Collections Care in the Archives – preserving the then for the now and for the future
Archives are often portrayed as being held in ‘dusty’ conditions, such as dark, dingy basements – but this is actually something that are deliberately avoided! Archive services are very conscious of the conditions required to ensure the long-term preservation of collections, and aspire to have state of the art facilities with latest technology. The staff…Continue Reading Collections Care in the Archives – preserving the then for the now and for the future