Wheel of Drams at Maesycwmmer by Andy Hazell

Wheel of Drams by Andy Hazell near the Hengoed Viaduct in Maesycwmmer, a village near Caerphilly.

From Cywaith Cymru :

Andy Hazell was commissioned to create a landmark sculpture to celebrate the refurbishment of the Hengoed Viaduct and its inclusion into the National Cycle Network. Wheel of Drams is a dramatic eight metre high circular sculpture of six curved steel coal drams that commemorate the original haulage companies that operated on the goods line that passed over the viaduct. The circular shape also represents the move from the route being used by coal drams to bicycles.

The sculpture was completed in June 2000 and played an important part in officially launching the National Cycle Network on midsummer day, June 21st 2000. The network is a linked series of traffic-free paths, minor roads and traffic-calmed roads running right through urban centres which now reaches many parts of Britain. The viaduct had been closed for many years but since its reopening it has quickly become a popular cross valley route between Hengoed and Maesycymmer for both pedestrians and cyclists.

In 1999 Sustrans, the sustainable transport charity, acquired more than 200 miles of former railway routes from British Railways Board, many sections opening up local networks, crossing rivers or main roads or threading through congested urban areas. Hengoed Viaduct, 130 feet high with its 16 stone arches, was one of the stunning historic structures transferred to Sustrans.

The viaduct formed part of the Great Western Railway’s Vale of Neath branch line and was fully opened for operational traffic in 1858 although trains had been passing over the structure since October 1857. The embanked approaches to the viaduct itself had also involved considerable construction work and several properties had to be demolished to make way for the route. The viaduct, which cost £20,000 to build, along with the railway brought increased employment and prestige to the area. Millions of tons of Welsh coal passed over the viaduct for the greater part of a century, not only to other parts of Britain, but also, during the First World War, to the coaling bases of the Grand Fleet.

The railway line closed in 1964 and the structure was given Grade II listing by CADW, the Welsh Historic Buildings Agency in 1974 as a result of its importance to the development of local industry and because of its dramatic landscape value.

Andy Hazell lives in Knighton, Powys and apart from his large scale sculptural work is well known for his tin automata, machines, chandeliers and furniture. Among his other public works which can be seen in Wales is the Thumbprint Monolith at Swansea Central Police Station and the Palladian Railings between Commercial Street and Bank Lane at Tredegar.

The sculpture was jointly funded by Sustrans, Caerphilly County Borough Council and Groundwork Caerphilly

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