Walking Offa’s Dyke (Part 3)

Kington

Surnames such as Williams, Hughes, Pritchard and Jones above the shops belie the fact that Kington is just over the border in England.  The writer and museum curator Ffransis Payne (1900-1992) was born and brought up here.  His two volumes Crwydro Sir Faesyfed chronicling his wanderings around Radnorshire contain a wealth of information about the old county of Radnorshire.

I made my way out of the town following the path towards Y Gelli Gandryll (Hay-on -Wye), crossing Hergest Ridge. Llyfr Coch Hergest (The Red Book of Hergest), one of the most important medieval manuscripts written in the Welsh language was in the possession of the Vaughans of Hergest Court at one time. I walked through the glorious countryside, passing the villages of Gladestry and Newchurch until finally arriving at Y Gelli.

Hay-on-Wye

With around thirty bookshops to choose from it is truly a paradise for all book lovers. Some shops specialize in particular subjects, including children’s literature. Which brings me on to one of the Library’s more unusual recent acquisitions. Namely a hand-coloured continuous strip view illustrating the nursery rhyme Humpty Dumpty.The work, published in 1843, is attributed to Samuel Edward Maberly.  On the upper cover the verse is printed in English and French. However on the inside there are additional translations of the nursery rhyme in Welsh, Hebrew, Latin, Greek, German and Italian. There are few other extant copies. However not all of them include the Welsh verse.  It is probable that the printer was not familiar with the Welsh language as the verse does contain errors. Nevertheless this is still a rare item worth preserving for future generations.