The location of an historic chair which dates back nearly 500 years has become the focus of an investigation by a community who wish to return it home.
The bardic chair in question was presented to leading literary figure Meurig Dafydd – who was a bard for the noble Lewis family – for his poetry at an Eisteddfod held at Van Mansion, near Caerphilly, in 1580.
The chair was then rescued from the mansion in the 17th century, following Dafydd’s death in 1595, and reappeared at the 1888 Eisteddfod in Caerphilly.
Now, Van Community Council Clerk, Cllr John Dilworth, is hoping to piece together the journey of the chair and discover its whereabouts so it can be returned to the community.
Cllr Dilworth said: “The bardic chair is part of the rich heritage of Van. We haven’t been able to find any traces of it since 1888, but are making enquiries. If anyone has any knowledge, we would love to hear from them.
“It may be in a local collection, or with the Bute family, who owned Caerphilly Castle from the late 18th century.
“These chairs have a habit of changing hands and moving around.
“Ones have been found in Canada and America in recent years, and it would be great if we could bring this one home and put it on display for the public to view a snippet of our rich history.”
• Pupils from a Cwrt Rawlin Primary School in Caerphilly have been doing some investigations of their own, working hard on a project titled The Legacy of Van Mansion.
The year 3 pupils focused on the mansion after taking an interest in the grade II listed Tudor building, which can be seen from the school’s ground.
After producing a questionnaire which was distributed to staff, parents and fellow pupils to gauge how much was known about the mansion, they compiled a leaflet of all the information they had learnt, outlining the mansion’s history.
Headteacher, Tara Lloyd, said: “The project has enabled the class to make links in their local community and share knowledge, as well as using ICT to aid their learning.”