Women in Our Collections

The images in our collections are mainly associated with specific monuments in Wales, whether that is houses, industrial and archaeological sites, chapels, castles, etc. The monuments were built and used by people, but historically our archive has focussed on the stones, timber, bricks and steel of our heritage – and not so much the people.

However, as you can see, people (including women) do occasionally sneak in! Often described in the catalogue description as ‘figure’ as in ‘view of [site name] with figure’, they are usually incidental to the main subject which is the monument or building.  

These are the women (and girls) I have discovered – women beside their cottages, working, going to chapel; some depicted in stone, metal and in paintings, or represented by clothing. No one person is named (if you can identify any please get in touch!), but they are there, reflecting their central role in the built heritage of Wales.