About Us

Strata Florida Abbey, Pontrhydfendigaid. Undated. (Image: CD2003_625_024 / NPRN: 95764) Llyn Gafr, Craig Las. View of zig-zag peak track. Undated. (Image: CD2005_605_007 / NPRN: 55712)

Survey, Research and Recording

The great strength of the Royal Commission, making it different from other organisations or institutions curating archives, is that the Commission maintains an active field survey branch. This enables the Commission to fill discernible gaps in the national archive of monuments and buildings – the National Monuments Record of Wales. The Commission can respond to identified threats to particular archaeological areas or buildings and to requests for recording action whenever possible.

The Royal Commission is in a unique position to provide a national overview of Welsh archaeology and historic architecture. Its field survey and photography programmes produce interpretative results available to the public as printed publications and on the Royal Commission website, complementing the information available from the on-line database, Coflein. Branch staff use the most suitable survey and interpretative aids available.

Specialisms include aerial photography, satellite-guided ground survey (GPS) and tree-ring dating (dendrochronology) .

Current projects include: the Nonconformist Chapels of Wales, the Uplands Archaeology of Wales, Swansea Canal and Railways (with Swansea Canal Society)and Iron-workers’ Houses of Wales (with Jeremy Lowe).