Manod Quarry near Blaenau Ffestiniog played a unique role in the Second World War. As London became a strategic bombing target a safe haven for the nation's priceless paintings had to be found. Initially, priceless pictures & paintings were secretly transported from the National Gallery into various parts of North Wales but with the threat of bombing from Liverpool it was decided to place the pictures in a huge underground chamber entered by a long tunnel at Manod. (1941) Special storage areas were built and air-conditioned. To See contemporary photos of the Art Repository visit http://www.penmorfa.com/Rhiwbach/manod3.html "The pictures included those by Rembrandt, Van Dyke, Leonardo da Vinci and Gainsborough." (Various sources)
Categories & Keywords
Category:Artistic
Subcategory:Paintings
Subcategory Detail:
Keywords:air-raids, blaenau ffestiniog, blitz, churchill, cymru, fine art, manod, national gallery, paintings, quarries, quarry, slate, wales, wartime secrets, world war 2
