"Five big black monumental seats have been placed near Abersytwyth harbour. Why?

A group of local people have come together to work on a project to make our history more obvious through a series of public art works.

The Rivers to the Sea, Harbour to the World Project has been busy working with a local artist to create a conversation piece. We have been busy raising money to achieve our goal and this sculptural seat at the harbour is the second of many which will be put up in Ceredigion to raise awareness of our history.

Finances have been raised through the Spirit of the Miners project. Wales is famous for its coal mines but mining in Ceredigion was very different, it included the production of lead, zinc, copper and silver. Few people are aware of this important part of our history.

Mineral veins in the Cambrian Mountains have been mined for over 3,500 years. At its climax, in the 1870s there were over 230 mines working. At that time all ores were transported through the harbour over the sea.

The siting of a new art seat at Aberystwyth Harbour will give those who visit the harbour the opportunity to stop and think about what happened in this area. The massive black seats stand like the ribs of an old ship but also suggest the standing stones of ancient Celtic times, there is even a suggestion of the Eisteddfod chair about these sculptures.

They are wood and metal and remind us of all sorts of things. The cut marks refer to the project and the lead mining history with the silver line on the central seat reminding us of the rivers.

We have now reached a point where a seat has been produced by Roger Newman for the Ystwyth Trail in Llanilar and now these new seats by David Lloyd, of Llanybyther, for Aberystwyth harbour. We have been very fortunate to be supported by Aberystwyth Town Council, Spirit of the Miners, Countryside Council of Wales, Communities First and Ceredigion County Council.

We came together initially to promote the history of Aberystwyth Harbour in relation to the lead mining industry of north Ceredigion. We felt that there was very little to indicate any connection with the history of this development at the harbour and visitors should be made aware of the growth and development of this once major industry and port in mid Wales.

Having seats positioned on this site will hopefully make people stop and think about the past use and development of the harbour in relation to the development of Aberystwyth and the industry. We will bring all these links together through other works too.

We asked members of the public to help us with suggestions and ideas of what information and designs could be included on these seats. The project has taken nearly two years to complete.

There is also a plan to undertake some workshops with local schools, mainly to raise awareness of the rich history of mining and the heritage of our area. We also want to gather ideas together and involve as many people as possible at this stage of the scheme with other projects to highlight our unique history. We hope to work on a sound trail next and possibly a piece of theatre based on emigration from the port.

The Rivers to the Sea group has already worked with teenagers from Penglais school resulting in a floor mosaic showing the types of vessels which once used the Aberystwyth harbour. This has now been fixed near the harbour and the new seats surround it.

Pupils from Penglais school have also produced a series of decorative banners based on the history of the harbour which were on show at the National Museum in Cardiff until recently. The banners are now displayed at Ceredigion Museum, Aberystwyth.

The 'Rivers to the Sea, Harbour to the World' group believe that art in public places is for the enjoyment of people. It helps to create environments which are humane, entertaining and stimulating.

Works of art attract people to places. They enhance a sense of identity and of the community's sense of pride and responsibility for a town or village. We hope to create other stimulating works and wish to involve as many local people as possible in a variety of creative ways.

The Rivers to the Sea group is keen to include a variety of art works or interpretations to help people engage with the unique history of the harbour and the promenade.

An extended interpretive trail around the harbour and sea front area of Aberystwyth would be good - it would be something that could enhance this part of the town, encourage visitors to explore this part of Aberystwyth and at the same time to learn something of its history. We need to encourage people from the north prom to walk around the castle point and down to the harbour. Many visitors miss this interesting part of the town.

The iconic seats have some text on them, one in Welsh and one in English which help interpret the story. The large central seat also has a steel river shape running down it to suggest the Rheidol and Ystwyth rivers.

For more information about the project contact the Ceredigion Museum through their website listed to the right of this page."

Article by Shelagh Hourahane

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