Banners of the South Wales Miners

‘Banners are the memory of a movement.’ Gwyn Alf Williams, Historian.

The colours, images, and fabrics used to create the banners provide a unique and powerful insight into our collective history and tradition.

This exhibition explores the history of miners’ banners in the South Wales coalfield, especially those banners held as part of the South Wales Coalfield Collection at the South Wales Miners’ Library, Swansea University.

The banners individually and collectively reveal a rich social history of the South Wales Coalfield. They are our collective memory. They tell us about our parents and grandparents struggles and ideals in the past and of our aspirations for the future.