Very busy recently - in fact it’s been an interesting couple of weeks – now working on two main projects.  The first is at Llangollen Museum, where I’ve been awarded the contract as Documentations Officer – 3 days a week for the next few months making sure that their collections are fully up to date, correct and all with the proper images.  It’s similar to the work I’ve been doing in Llandudno in many respects, but with the added photography and scanning.  

It’s always good to look through collections like this – ok it’s not exactly “every day is like Christmas!”, but there is so much scope for the curious curator (good name for a book – or a tv series – someone commission it now, I’ll take 10%... maybe 20…).  Favourite find so far has been the log book that I’ve mentioned on the Llangollen Museum Facebook page –I’ve been asked to blog on my findings by the management.  It was the log book of and RAF pilot who had gone on to fly gliders and detailed his missions on D-Day, taking across a party from the Royal Ulster Rifles (my grandfather’s old regiment, albeit in the 14-18 war) and later in the Rhine Crossings.  

I’ll be doing a bit of museum management at Llangollen as well and the possibility of a little practical archaeology later in the summer too… looking forward to it.

The other project is at the Syr Henry Jones Museum, Llangernyw.  It’s one of those museums that can get overlooked because it’s in a village in the hills between Abergele and Llanrwst and is, at first glance, only on one topic – it’s the childhood home of the aforementioned Syr (Welsh spelling) Henry Jones, who went from mending shoes in his father’s workshop, to gaining the Chair of Philosophy at Glasgow, and the museum celebrates his life an works – it is certainly a good story of local boy makes good, but it also offers a snapshot of Welsh rural life in the nineteenth century and points out the importance of education in Welsh society at the time.  The museum is well worth the drive through some very pretty scenery.  I’ll be working on the museum’s collections management but also their forward plan and documentation as they prepare for their Accreditation return in the October tranche.  

I’ve been working on collections management a lot recently, so it will be good and useful to work on the strategic side of museums management. 

Today was also the launch of the People’s Collection in North-East Wales.  It’s great to see results of the work you’ve put in, even if it was over a year ago – or maybe it just seems it…  The launch was at Wrexham Museum, which meant that apart from catching up with my AMA mentor I was able to view the exhibition “To War with Wellington” based on Michael Crumplin’s private collection of Napoleonic memorabilia.  Unmissable if you’re anywhere near the area and a Napoleonic fan.  Which I am.  

On the subject of a year ago, tonight also saw the broadcast of Lost Routes of Britain with Griff Rhys Jones – glad Nantclwyd y Dre got some publicity – and also satisfying to see the on screen experts tell the viewing audience the odd thing that you told them off-camera just a few moments before!  I was just out of shot a few times too… a good experience and an amazing chance to publicise Nantclwyd y Dre, which ought to be better known and more visited.