The 10 greatest treasures of our National Library

The 10 greatest treasures of our National Library

Mar 21 2007 Western Mail

It holds many riches from our past - choosing favourites is no easy task. Trevor Fishlock takes a deep breath...

HERE'S the challenge. I'm at the National Library of Wales on the hill overlooking the sea at Aberystwyth. From its millions of books and manuscripts and remarkable objects and curiosities I've been asked to choose just 10.

It's a bit like Desert Island Discs, but more fun and much harder.

I admit I have a head start. The library celebrates its centenary this year and I've been here making television and radio programmes about its treasures for BBC Wales and gathering material for a book. It would be easier to pick my top 200 or 300 treasures, but 10 it has to be.

Of course, the library itself is a wonder, the living memory of the people, the dream that flowered into a reality. It sprang from the great 19th century welling of Welsh consciousness and aspiration from which emerged the unifying national institutions: university, library, museum and eisteddfod.

The library and museum have grown into the granaries of beloved treasures; and the library itself stands as the powerful witness of the Welsh experience, affirming six simple and determined words: Wales was, is and will be.