A 130-year-old medal awarded to an Abercarn miner for bravery has been sold for £6,900 at auction.
On September 11, 1878, an explosion ripped through Abercarn Colliery leaving many of the 325 men and boy workers trapped underground.
Miner William Walters was part of the nine-man team of mineworkers that volunteered to descend a two-mile shaft.
There were 82 men and boys crowded at the bottom of the shaft, struggling with each other to get up, many severely burned. William Walters and his team rescued all 82, putting their lives in danger to help their fellow workers.
A total of 262 lost their lives, and Abercarn Colliery disaster remains one of the worst mining disasters in British history.
For his bravery Queen Victoria awarded William Walters the Albert Medal of the Second Class.
The same medal went up for auction on July 8 at Birmingham auctioneers Fellows and Sons.
Sold for £6,900, the buyer’s details have not been disclosed