Describes megaliths, ancient crosses, holy wells, magic trees, caves and sunken cities in Wales and discusses Welsh folklore concerning King Arthur, the devil, fairies, and mermaids

Mysterious Wales

Politics & Social Sciences

Barber, Chris

Social Sciences

Academy Chicago Pub

The Romance of the Welsh Mountains: An Anthology of Climber's Tales and Walkers' Ways

Blorenge Books

Hando's Gwent: Centenary Tribute to Fred Hando the Artist/Historian of Gwent

Hando's Gwent

Travel

Europe

The ancient stones of Wales

History

Blorenge Bks

Gwent Industrial Heritage

Arts & Photography

Photography & Video

Amberley Publishing

Wales is a land haunted by its own past, with a treasure trove of beautiful and magical places  some rarely visited. Chris Barber guides explorers to prehistoric megaliths, remote stone circles, burial chambers, secret caves, lonely lakes and bottomless’ pools. Many sites in Wales are associated with King Arthur, Merlin and other remarkable magicians, the Devil, fairies and water nymphs. Linked with the Golden Age of Celtic Saints are primitive churches, ancient crosses, inscribed memorial stones, island sanctuaries and holy wells, which all have romantic legends adding to their mystery. With the help of his own illuminating photographs and illustrations, Chris Barber unlocks the ancient past, and evokes the wealth of tradition that makes Wales such an enchanting country to visit and explore.

The construction of the Merthyr, Tredegar &amp; Abergavenny Railway was a remarkable engineering achievement. Not only was it one of the most spectacular railways in Britain, but it was also one of the most difficult to build, and its long and steep gradients made it one of the most expensive to operate. The section through the Clydach Gorge was particularly dramatic with the line twisting and turning, but climbing steadily along a ledge cut above the deep valley. The MT&amp;A is remembered with much nostalgia, for in those days, Abergavenny was a thriving and important railway centre with three stations and the town was alive with a symphony of sounds such as the clang of hammers, the hiss of steam, whistles tooting and wheels clattering over joints and points. When railway activity in Abergavenny reached its peak, there were over a thousand people employed in jobs associated with this form of transport. Chris Barber has compiled this richly illustrated book to commemorate the sixtieth anniversary of the closure of this much loved railway in 1957. The last journey on the line took place almost a hundred years after the railway was first proposed, and if it still existed today, it would undoubtedly be a popular tourist attraction.

The Merthyr, Tredegar & Abergavenny Railway

Engineering & Transportation

Transportation

Erected by man for some long-forgotten purpose, there are large numbers of enigmatic standing stones, stone circles and burial chambers to be found in Wales. This book provides descriptions of some of the largest, tallest and best-preserved examples that can be visited still. Many of them are remarkable feats of construction, involving hewing and transporting large blocks of stone over long distances to be erected for reasons unknown.Chris Barber examines numerous legends, once believed to be true, that are associated with the stones. Some stones are said to uproot themselves on certain nights of the year and go for a drink or swim in a nearby river. Others are reputed to have been thrown to their sites by giants or legendary figures such as King Arthur and the Devil. Some stones bear cryptic signs such as 'cup and ring marks', telling mute stories that we cannot read but which provide a link with our prehistoric ancestors. The question arises, why was so much energy devoted to erecting these megalithic monuments? It has been shown that stone circles have an astronomical significance and dowsers claim to have detected a hidden force in the stones, even experiencing violent reactions when they touch them. It is shown how quartz contained in the stones appears to cause fogging on photographs and other strange effects. Dowsers also claim that there are strange spiral powers in the stones that wax and wane according to the phases of the moon. Such forces of nature may well be attributed to electromagnetism.This fascinating book is richly illustrated and gives location details of some of the more unusual sites, which are sometimes in remote locations, requiring map-reading skills to find them. These monuments were erected by man at a time when he must have felt part of nature and perhaps possessed forgotten knowledge that gave him a much closer relationship with the Earth. Read this book and you will feel compelled to go in search of the mysterious megaliths of Wales.

Megaliths of Wales: Mysterious Sites in the Landscape

Ancient Civilizations

Hill’s Tramroad was established in about 1817 by the Blaenavon ironmaster Thomas Hill to connect his ironworks with Llanfoist Wharf on the Brecknock &amp; Abergavenny Canal. Trams loaded with pig iron were hauled by horses through a long tunnel to Pwlldu on the other side of the mountain. From there they were taken on a dramatic journey along a ledge cut into the hillside to reach Garnddyrys Forge, situated at an altitude of 1,100 feet above sea level. Here the pig iron was refined and converted into products such as bars, rails, and plates, which were then loaded onto the trams to be hauled around to the front of the Blorenge Mountain and then lowered down a series of inclines to arrive at Llanfoist Wharf, where narrow boats were waiting to begin a two-day journey to Newport Docks. In this book, author Chris Barber takes the reader through the fascinating story of this early transport route, set within the Blaenavon Industrial Landscape World Heritage Site and the Brecon Beacons National Park.

Hills Tramroad: Blaenavon World Heritage Site

Business & Money

Industries

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