THE latest community news from Aberystwyth

St David’s Church, Bath Street

SUNDAY, 22 September: Morning Service at 10.30am, Rev Eifion Roberts; Evening Service at 6pm, Major Ray Hobbins.

Choral society

REHEARSALS get under way at 7.30pm on Tuesday, 24 September in the Old Hall, Old College for the society’s forthcoming Christmas concert in the Great Hall of the Arts Centre on Saturday, 14 December.

In addition to Faure’s sublime and unforgettable Requiem, choristers under the baton of conductor David Russell Hulme, will be getting to grips with Gerald Finzi’s In Terra Pax.

Written just two years before Finzi’s death in 1956, this work skilfully juxtaposes words of Robert Bridges (set for baritone soloist) with the familiar Christmas story from St Luke’s Gospel (set for soprano soloist and chorus).

The result is an attractive piece for the society’s Christmas concert.

New choristers in all voices will be most welcome to join the choir and anyone interested should come to the Tuesday evening practices, where they can be assured of a warm welcome.

The choir has a no auditions policy.

Further information on the society and the concert is available from the chairman, June Wilson on 07852 188184.

Rotary club

DR Jon Dollery, mapping officer for Comisiwn Brenhinol Henebion Cymru – the Royal Commission on Historical & Ancient Monuments (Wales), gave the club an illustrated talk on the history of Pen Dinas hill fort.

Although Pen Dinas is shown on a 19th century map as a ‘Roman camp’, its origins date back much further.

Tradition refers to it as the seat of the mythical Celtic king Maelor Gawr.

It is actually two forts – the oval-shaped north fort, and the later ‘south fort’ which originally consisted of a stone wall, ramparts and substantial gateway, as well as the embankments which have remained to this day.

It was thought that some of the stone from the original constructions were used in the building of the Wellington Monument in the mid-19th century.

The antiquity of the site was first realised during excavations initiated by Prof Daryll Forde of the University College’s Department of Geography and Anthropology in the 1930s.

Among the finds uncovered were fragments of early pottery, possibly dating back to the Iron Age, and pebbles which were thought to have been used as missiles during attacks on the fort.

A recent geophysical survey has found evidence of a Bronze Age barrow (burial chamber), dating back some 2,000 years earlier than the Iron Age fort.

The location of the fort would have had strategic importance in an age when the main mode of travel was by sea.

A map of the ancient world by the Roman geographer and astronomer Ptolemy shows place names in Wales which include ‘stuccia fluvius’ which could well be a reference to the Brythonnic form of ‘Ystwyth river’.

Jon Dollery said that much of the site remains unexcavated, and much more could be done to unearth its secrets, using modern methods such as GPS, dating technology and laser aerial surveys.

Pen Dinas’ historical and archaeological importance deserves to be further researched and appreciated.

Ramblers

ON Saturday, 21 September, Aberystwyth Ramblers will walk the Llynnau Cregennan Circular and Pared y Cefn Hir scramble (optional).

Sue W and Sue H will lead this eight-mile, B-grade walk.

They will start at the beautiful lakes of Cregennan and pass below Pared y Cefn Hir with fantastic views of the Cadair Idris range (optional scramble onto Pared y Cefn Hir and walk along part of the ridge before dropping down to join those who have taken the lower valley route).

They then follow Cwm Gwynant down to the Mawddach Trail.

The return route ascends steeply via the Arthog Falls to the Clapper Bridge at Llys Bradwen and on to the car park at Cregennan.

Meet at Plascrug Leisure Centre at 9am for car share or alternately at the Snowdonia National Park Car Park at the Lakes of Cregennan (SH 658143) at 10.30am.

Cylch Cinio

CAFWYD cychwyn ardderchog i flwyddyn newydd yn hanes Cylch Cinio Aberystwyth yng Ngwesty’r Richmond ar nos Wener, 6 Medi.

Y cadeirydd am eleni yw’r cynddeintydd o Drawscoed, Sion Griffiths.

Braf oedd cael rhoi croeso ar ddechrau blwyddyn i ddau aelod newydd i’n plith Dewi Hughes, nawr o Lanbadarn a’r cyn heddwas Paul Davies sydd wedi dychwelyd ac ail gysylltu â’r Cylch.

Anfonwyd ein dymuniadau da am wellhad llwyr a buan i’n cyngadeirydd Dr Richard Edwards sydd ar hyn yn derbyn triniaeth feddygol.

Y g?r gwadd yn y noson agoriadol oedd y Dr Elwyn Hughes, Bethel, yr awdur, yr ieithydd ac arbenigwr ar hanes bro Dyffryn Ogwen.

Braf iawn hefyd oedd cael cwmni ei briod Deulwen Hughes.

Wrth ei gyflwyno cyfeiriodd y cadeirydd ato fel awdur y ‘best sellers’ Cymraeg (ag eithrio’r Beibl).

Bu’n olygydd Cyfansoddiad a Beirniadaethau yr Eisteddfod Genedlaethol am 30 mlynedd ac mae ei gyfrol defnyddiol Canllawiau Iaith a Chymorth Sillafu wedi gwerthu 60,000 o gopïau.

Bu hefyd yn gyfrifol am gasglu a dyfeisio termyddiaeth Gymraeg i Ddeintyddiaeth a chyhoeddwyd 6,000 o dermau ar gyfer y proffesiwn.

Bu’n athro Cymraeg ac yn Brifathro Ysgol Dyffryn Ogwen ac yn 1988 penodwyd ef yn Gyfarwyddwr y Ganolfan Astudiaethau Iaith ym Mhrifysgol Bangor.

Mae bellach yn Ymgynghorydd Iaith hunan gyflogedig.

Mae’n arbenigwr ar hanes y newyddiadurwr a’r awdur a’r bardd Caradog Pritchard ac roedd ei sgwrs ddifyr am Ddyffryn Ogwen a’i chwareli yn frith o gyfeiriadau at gynnyrch llenyddol Caradog Pritchard.

Dangosodd i ni gyfres o luniau o hen gymeriadau’r ardal a’r rheiny yn sail i nifer o gymeriadau y nofel gyfarwydd Un Nos Ola Leuad.

Cafwyd hefyd hanes y Streic Fawr a chefndir i nofelau T Rowland Hughes.

Wrth ddiolch i’r siaradwr cyfeiriodd Geoff Davies at wybodaeth eithriadol Elwyn Hughes am hanes cyfoethog Dyffryn Ogwen, gan gyfeirio yn benodol at ei gyfraniad aruthrol yn diogelu hen dermau chwarelyddol Cymraeg a fyddai wedi diflannu i raddau helaeth erbyn hyn oni bai am ddiddordeb ein siaradwr yn y maes.

Enillydd y raffl oedd John Lewis.

Bydd y cyfarfod nesa’ ar 11 Hydref yn Llety Parc a’r siaradwr gwadd fydd y cyn-brifathro a’r hanesydd Gerald Morgan ac wrth gwrs mae croeso mawr i aelodau newydd i ymuno gyda ni.

Llun: Yr awdur, yr ieithydd a’r hanesydd J Elwyn Hughes oedd y g?r gwadd yng nghyfarfod agoriadol y Cylch Cinio ar nos Wener, 6 Medi. Yn y llun mae Geoff Davies, Dickey Wyn Davies (trysorydd) Deulwen ac Elwyn Hughes, Sion Griffiths (cadeirydd) a John Williams (is-gadeirydd).

Cambrian Floral Society

THE hazy days of summer are behind us and the forthcoming autumn/winter programme awaits.

To bring the summer activities to a close they all set off on a beautiful sunny day to visit various gardens in the Welshpool area.

Afterwards they all met up for tea at the Derwen Garden Centre and everyone agreed it had been a very enjoyable day.

As August is the dormant month, some of the members successfully competed in floral art and horticultural classes at various summer shows.

As previously reported it has been necessary to change the venue and night for the forthcoming programme.

They will now be meeting on the third Friday of each month at Llanbadarn Fawr Church Hall.

The programme commences with a ‘getting to know us’ social evening and a short demonstration by the newer members to follow.

This will take place on Friday, 20 September, at 7pm and existing and new members are very welcome.

Postcard club

FOLLOWING a summer break, the members of the Aberystwyth Postcard Club met to exchange, buy and sell from their collections of postcards on 3 September, at the first meeting of the autumn.

They also had the opportunity to talk about their most outstanding acquisitions acquired during the previous months.

The next meeting will be held on Tuesday, 1 October, when Alice Briggs, deputy curator of Ceredigion County Museum will give an illustrated talk entitled ‘Artists Postcards - Postcards as Art’.

The meeting will be held in St David’s Church Hall, Bath Street at 2pm.

Give blood

PEOPLE are being encouraged to give blood next week at a special drop-in session in Aberystwyth.

Those willing to donate blood can walk in to the Morlan Centre on Wednesday, 24 September between 2pm and 7pm; Thursday, 26 September between 10am - 1.30pm and 3pm – 7pm; and Friday from 10am – 12.30pm and 2pm - 4.20pm.

If you’re a member of a club, society or group, send your news to [email protected]