Old College

02/06/2026

Walkabout

It’s a privilege to walk around the Old College and see the progress made from one week to the next.

High up on the tower, and the scaffolding is coming down.

As each level is removed, new windows are being fitted and the stonework restored where the scaffolding was fixed to the tower or close to the walls.

The re-slating of the conical roof over the old South Seddon lecture theatre and soon to be cinema, has also been finished.

This means the scaffolding can be lowered to allow for the final section of the South Seddon lead roof to be completed.

One thing leads to another.

The stonework on the gable ends of North Seddon, overlooking King Street, is also nearing completion with lightning conductors now in place.

Lower down, on the same side, individual stones are cut by hand as part of the restoration.

There are also bat boxes and new cast iron drainpipes in place.

Inside South Seddon, stairwells are being painted, new floors laid, lights fitted and ceilings installed, and there are tiles on the walls of the toilets.

Painting is underway in the Quad, and in the atrium, the concrete floor for the grand new function room is in place.

It was hot last week, yes, but progress on site continued unabated.

Cronfa Treftadaeth y Loteri Gen / National Lottery Heritage Fund - Cymru

28/05/2026

Today we’re sharing the Aberdons Collection: 12 caricatures of Aberystwyth University lecturers dating from 1910.

The artist, Ap Rhobert (real name Howard Lloyd Roberts), was a well‑known figure in the area at the turn of the twentieth century. He was Art Master at Machynlleth County School and in later years, he ran a grocery and bakery business in his native village, Borth, and his shop windows displayed his caricatures.

Although the following newspaper extract refers to an exhibition of different work, it neatly summarises Ap Rhobert’s distinctive artistic style:

“Added to his undoubted skill as an artist, Mr Roberts has brought to bear on his work a keen sense of observation, and in most of his delineations has succeeded in bringing out, in a most effective way, either a striking mannerism or some other outstanding characteristic in the features or clothing of the person sketched. Mr Roberts is above all else a humourist, and it is safe to predict that none will enjoy his caricatures more than the subjects themselves.”

We look forward to shining a spotlight on many more leading figures in their fields through the exhibitions and events programme at Old College when it opens.

📷1- Professor Fleur
📷2- Professor Edward Edwards
📷3- Professor Edward Annwyl
📷4- Professor Jenkin Jones
📷5- Principal J F Roberts
📷6- Professor Thomas Arthur Levi
📷7- Professor T Stanley Roberts
📷8- unknown
📷9- unknown
📷10- Professor Hermann Ethe
📷11- Professor John Wilson Marshall

26/05/2026

More stained glass

As work begins on the restoration of the stained-glass windows, it’s worth taking a moment to look through the square, round or arched window; you get to choose this time.

A detailed survey by leading restorers Holy Well Glass has identified the various types of glass and leadwork in each window, the condition and the restoration required.

They come in all shapes and sizes.

There are trefoil, cinquefoil and sexfoil panels, and double-cusped quatrefoils.

And the curved sea-facing Seddon room features a series of rose windows with eight small roundels and a larger central panel.

Easily overlooked from the outside, the colours seen from the inside are as vibrant as ever.

There are also fanlights and doors that feature the Prince of Wales’s feathers and overlooking the Quad, windows salvaged from the ruins of the fire of 1885.

Then there’s the Art Nouveau influence on the porch window that looks into the porter’s lodge.

Most will be restored in situ and any broken glass or perished lead replaced.

That means that we will have restored over 1000 windows as we breathe new life into Old College.

Oh, and there are gargoyles and grotesques as well, but they are for another day.

Cronfa Treftadaeth y Loteri Gen / National Lottery Heritage Fund - Cymru

19/05/2026

Stained glass

The restoration of the stained-glass windows is underway.

The work is being undertaken by specialist restorers and conservators Ark Stained Glass.

Their first task was to remove the five tall sea-facing stained-glass windows high up in the Library.

Made up of sections measuring up to 1.5m in length, the windows were successfully removed in a day and have been taken to Ark’s workshop in Droitwich.

There, they will be stripped and cleaned, and the painted detail checked before being re-leaded and restored to their original condition.

And, as with so much of the work on Old College, the harsh coastal environment will inform the restoration process so they can best withstand the elements for years to come.

We look forward to their return.

We have mentioned the stone mullions that surround these windows before, and how they have moved over the years.

As part of the restoration, stainless steel rods will be inserted into the mullions to stabilise the building before the windows return.

This will also make it possible to appreciate the full height of the windows as the oak bracing that was placed across them over 60 years ago to prevent further movement can be removed.

In the meantime, did you know that medieval stained glass was the inspiration for an instrument designed and built by scientists at Aberystwyth University for the European Space Agency’s 2028 mission to Mars?

Follow the link below to find out more.

Cronfa Treftadaeth y Loteri Gen / National Lottery Heritage Fund - Cymru

14/05/2026

Olive Marsh was a student at Aberystwyth University from 1898 to 1900, living in Alexandra Hall while training to become a teacher.

Her letters to her fiancé, Lord Josiah Charles Stamp, which were gifted to the University in 1939, offer a fascinating insight into student life at the end of the nineteenth century.

Throughout their studies, the couple wrote to one another daily and posted letters twice a week.

In a letter sent in May 1939, Lord Stamp reflected on the lasting importance of Olive’s time in Aberystwyth, writing:

“We have both of us never ceased to be grateful for all that her experience of Aber: has meant during our lives, and we look with warm interest and sentiment upon the unceasing flow of new life and hope in the successive generations that pace from the Hall to the College by the Sea.”

12/05/2026

The Examinations Hall

Did you sit an exam here?

And did you ever look up between questions and wonder why the arches were never finished?

For the developer of the Castle Hotel, Thomas Savin, this was to be the great drawing room with bedrooms on the floor above.

Savin’s financial demise in September 1866 caused work to stop on the whole project and the stone carvings were never completed.

A small section, however, provides an insight into what might have been.

As well as the examinations, the Old Hall became a favoured location for the University’s public lectures and events.

As part of its transformation into a fantastic new venue for touring exhibitions and community activities, the stonework is being meticulously cleaned by colleagues from Swansea Decorating Services.

And, once more the original colour scheme is revealed as the layers of paint are carefully removed.

Incidentally, the library above wasn’t completed until 1892.

In 1928, Iwan Morgan wrote: “The present Examination Hall was incomplete and remained roofless for 25 years, being only completed after the fire – it served as an ash-tip and fowl-run and was the home of a noisy colony of jackdaws and doves!”.

Cronfa Treftadaeth y Loteri Gen / National Lottery Heritage Fund - Cymru

12/05/2026

08/05/2026

We’ve been thrilled to expand our volunteering opportunities, giving students practical, behind-the-scenes experience of working with heritage and collections.

Our 5-part Collections Management workshop series launched last academic year, engaging 15 students in hands-on learning including object handling, packing, conservation painting, and disaster response. The programme also included exclusive behind-the-scenes visits to Ceredigion Museum and the National Library of Wales.

This year, the series grew even further with new sessions on Exhibition Planning and Collections Cataloguing, and participation rising to over 30 students from a wide range of subjects.

From Fine Art to Science and Business, students are gaining valuable heritage skills alongside their studies.

Our collections have also opened doors to unique learning experiences. Work to identify corals from the internationally renowned Stephenson collection led to collaboration with experts from the Natural History Museum, who visited Aberystwyth to view the collection and run a coral identification workshop. Conservation students had the rare opportunity to work directly with these precious objects.

This is a fantastic example of how heritage collections can inspire, connect, and enrich student learning and we look forward to being able to deliver more of these opportunities when Old College opens.

Cronfa Treftadaeth y Loteri Gen / National Lottery Heritage Fund - Cymru

07/05/2026

Flying visit We’ve just received the latest drone footage of the Old College from our principal contractor Andrew Scott Ltd.

Produced by Buffoon Media, it gives a great insight into progress on site.

Cronfa Treftadaeth y Loteri Gen / National Lottery Heritage Fund - Cymru

01/05/2026

☀️Calan Mai, the first day of May, is the Welsh celebration of May Day and marks the beginning of summer, a season traditionally filled with bonfires, song, dancing, and the celebration of new growth.☀️

Also known as Calan Haf, this time of year was once welcomed with May carols (carolau Mai), summer dancing (dawnsio haf), and the decoration of homes with flowers gathered from the hedgerows. Communities would come together to celebrate the land and the turning of the seasons.

Traditions often began the night before, on Nos Galan Haf, with bonfires lit to usher in the summer. This night was considered an Ysbrydnos, or spirit night, adding a sense of mystery and meaning to the celebrations.