Objects of the month

Every object has a story to tell.

Each month, we shine a spotlight on a fascinating object from the collections of CofGar's museums. From treasured items on display to hidden gems cared for in our stores, these objects help us uncover the rich history, culture and people of Carmarthenshire and beyond.

Our Object of the Month feature goes beyond the museum label. We explore the intriguing stories, surprising discoveries, and historical connections that make each item special. Whether it is a remarkable artefact, a piece of industrial heritage, a work of art, or an everyday object with an extraordinary past, there is always something new to discover.

Join us each month as we delve deeper into the collections and reveal the stories behind the objects that preserve our shared heritage.

Carmarthenshire Museum

October 2026

The Voteporix Stone

If you like objects with stories to tell, don’t miss this impressive standing stone at Carmarthenshire Museum. It’s unusually large, beautifully carved, and it carries messages in two different writing systems.

Parc Howard Museum

July 2026

Felinfoel Brewery Beer Can

This month we are celebrating one of the most seemingly ordinary, but significant objects on display at Parc Howard. On Tuesday 3 December 1935, Felinfoel Brewery made history by producing the first fully commercially scaled beer can outside the United States.

Carmarthenshire Museum

March 2026

Handmade 1940s Doll’s House

This month's Object of the Month provides an intimate glimpse into life on the Home Front. This charming, handmade doll’s house is one of the more overlooked treasures in Carmarthenshire Museum. Made in the 1940s by Edwin Hughes for his sister‑in‑law, it reflects the creativity and imagination of the wartime home front.

Black and white photo of Dylan Thomas as a young man looking at the viewer within a faded cardboard frame

Dylan Thomas Boathouse

February 2026

Dylan in Space

An unremarkable object in the Boathouse collection - a sepia photograph of a 20‑year‑old Dylan Thomas - has a story that stretches far beyond Laugharne. Once owned by Pamela Hansford, Dylan’s first love and correspondent between 1933 and 1934, the photograph eventually found its way into the hands of NASA.

Museum of Land Speed

January 2026

Sunbeam Sprint ‘Model 10’, 1924

This month's Object of the Month comes from the Museum of Land Speed at Pendine Sands. The Museum’s motorcycle was owned and raced by L.V. Thomas, who last competed with it on Pendine Sands in 1949, and find out more about the motorcycle's history.

Carmarthenshire Museum

December 2025

Lady Frances Vaughan Painting

At first glance, this is a striking 17th‑century portrait of Lady Frances Vaughan (c.1621–1650), who became the second wife of Richard Vaughan, 2nd Earl of Carbery. Their family home was Gelli Aur (Golden Grove) near Llandeilo.

But for many years, the biggest mystery wasn’t who was painted — it was who painted her.

Historic black-and-white photograph showing a large tree stump enclosed by an iron protective railing on a raised stone base beside a village street.

Carmarthenshire Museum

November 2025

Merlin’s Oak

In British folklore the oak is a magical tree that symbolises strength and wisdom. In the Welsh collection of folk tales called the Mabinogi, Gwydion and Math create Blodeuwedd from broom and oak flowers, and Lleu Llaw Gyffes escapes death by transforming into an eagle and flying to a magic oak tree.

Objects of the month

Site

The Voteporix Stone

Felinfoel Brewery Beer Can

Handmade 1940s Doll’s House

Dylan in Space

Sunbeam Sprint ‘Model 10’, 1924

Lady Frances Vaughan Painting

Merlin’s Oak

Site

The Voteporix Stone

Felinfoel Brewery Beer Can

Handmade 1940s Doll’s House

Dylan in Space

Sunbeam Sprint ‘Model 10’, 1924

Lady Frances Vaughan Painting

Merlin’s Oak