Wales in 100 Objects

Wales in 100 Objects is a very stylish book. Almost 20 centimetres square, it has a chunky feel in the hand, and when you open it at random you are immediately struck by the richness of Rolant Dafis's photographs, which are bled to the edges of every right-hand page. The objects on display are invariably photographed close-up against a dark, frequently a black, background, with carefully placed, often raking light, which brings into sharp focus the physicality of the object in question. This is there right from the start with a photograph of an Acheulian hand axe, circa 230,000 years old, found in Pontnewydd Cave and made by early Neanderthals. The axe is lit from the right so that the strike-faces on the stone are caught in light and shadow, giving a sense of solidity, of substance, so that you know how it would feel and weigh in the hand. Often, only a detail of the object is photographed, as in the example of the wooden Jesse Tree in St Mary's Church, Abergavenny, which shows the head of the sleeping Jesse, emphasising the fine grain of the wood and the age of the carving. On every facing left-hand page there is a commentary on the relevant image by Andrew Green, set in double columns, sometimes with a centred thumbnail photo that further illustrates the main image. These commentaries are in fact finely crafted miniature essays, packed with information but written with an elegance which makes them a pleasure to read. As a result, you learn a great deal almost without realising it. Every period of Welsh history is covered, though there is a preponderance of images from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. These often illuminate major events in our culture, such as the publication of William Morgan's Welsh Bible in 1588 (illustrated by the finely designed title page, photographed at a slant); the Merthyr riots of 1816; the Chartist riot of 1839 (illustrated unexpectedly but brilliantly by Chartist leader John Frost's pistols - all three of them); the rise of Methodism; and coal mining (including the 1984-85 strike). Popular culture is there as well: the cover of Catatonia's first cassette tape; a Corgi toy car; SuperTed; football. And art and design: several paintings by journeyman-artists; Brynmawr furniture; a Laura Ashley dress. As Andrew Green notes in his introduction, 'objects are not historical texts', but they are a part of any nation's history and, as he goes on to say, 'They allow us to glimpse the lives of ordinary people, of women and children, and of the vanquished, whose voices often fail to reach the written record.' An endorsement by M. Wynn Thomas on the back cover describes the book as 'a splendid latter-day "cabinet of curiosities".' It is both, of course, and leads into the complexities of our history and culture in a wealth of different ways. Omissions? Well, an object reflecting the workaday culture of our hill farms? A reminder of the fight-back of the Welsh language spearheaded by Cymdeithas yr Iaith, many of whose members were gaoled for the cause? A memento of Meibion Glyndwr, even? Andrew Green is well aware that everyone's list will be different. His seems both imaginative and perceptive and in almost every way could hardly be bettered. -- John Barnie @ www.gwales.com