"Situated on the A487 road between Aberystwyth and Machynlleth - visitors might be deceived by its barn like external appearance until they glimpse the large water wheel at one side. With Cymer Abbey to its north and Strata Florida Abbey to its south, this post-medieval furnace is the most central of Cadw's main historic sites in Wales.

The furnace was built by Vernon, Kendall & Co. The Kendall's, who were in sole ownership by 1774, were a family of ironmasters from the West Midlands who had extensive interests in the Lake District and Scotland as well as furnaces and forges in Cheshire and Staffordshire - signifying that the furnace was part of an industrial empire on a British scale.

The location also signifies that the industrial revolution did not only leave its mark on the urbanized areas, but also on areas such as the rural hinterland of northern Ceredigion.

This woodland area was chosen to take advantage of the local charcoal supplies produced from the local forestation, while the iron was probably shipped in from Cumbria.

The monument consists of two main buildings, the main furnace building and overlooking it from further uphill, a large building in which the raw materials would have been stored until required.

The main feature of the monument is the water wheel - whilst the existing wheel is a later one, it is in the same position as the original blast furnace wheel.

Dyfi Furnace seems to have only been in use for 50 years and by 1810 it was abandoned. It was later converted into a sawmill, and it is this period that the present water wheel belongs.

A comprehensive programme of conservation began in 1977 and in 1987 the scheme received a 'Rural Wales Award' from the Council for the protection of Rural Wales.

For this latest round of conservation - the monument was closed to the public from 7 January 2008 until the end of February 2008.

Conservation work at Dyfi Furnace near Machynlleth was completed in June 2008 and the historic site was once again opened to the public.

The closure was necessary to enable craftsmen to consolidate and conserve the fabric of this ancient monument, which included the re-pointing of the lower two thirds of the outside of the charcoal store's west wall. Work was also undertaken to examine the upper level of the stack and the glazed panel to improve drainage.

The water wheel itself was also examined with the replacement of timber buckets and spokes as necessary. Detailed structural investigations also identified a need to rebuild the top of the furnace flue.

Article written by Osian Gwynn