Cardigan could be set to get it's own Angel of the North

That is the bold vision of nationally-renowned artist Sebastien Boyesen who wants to provide a fitting monument to the Battle of Crug Mawr, when a Welsh army inflicted a crippling defeat on their Norman counterparts. 

The battle, fought out on the north-eastern slopes of Banc-y-Warren at Penparc, turned into a running fight as the Welsh drove their enemies back towards Cardigan. 

Mr Boyesen designed and created the statue of Cranogwen in Llangrannog. (Image: Mike Lewis)The flight of the Normans turned into a complete rout and the slaughter was so great that the River Teifi was said to have become clogged with the corpses of men and horses. 

And out on the Teifi Marshes the bodies of fleeing Norman soldiers were feasted upon by hordes of ravenous wolves drawn down from the Preseli Hills. 

Mr Boyesen, who has lived in Llangrannog, for over thirty years, has produced works all over the UK. 

His portfolio includes ‘Guardian’ a 20m-tall monument marking the site of the 1960 Six Bells Colliery disaster at Abertillery, numerous designs in Newport, Gwent, where he worked as city sculptor for 24 years.

The Angel Of The North statue is thought to be the world’s largest statue of an angel. (Image: Mike Lewis)

And, more recently, the Cranogwen statute in Llangrannog commemorating the celebrated bard, mariner and social advocate, Sarah Jane Rees. 

“This could be our Angel of the North moment,” Mr Boyesen told town councillors during a discussion at Tuesday night’s meeting.

“When I researched the story of Crug Mawr I knew in a blinding flash what I wanted to do.” 

But his original aim of placing a horse statue on top of Banc-y-Warren ‘as a sentinel guarding the town’ was thwarted when Natural Resources Wales identified it as a Site of Special Scientific Interest. 

“They also wouldn’t want anyone to walk up there or any kind of access path,” he said.

“It’s incredibly frustrating. So the question now is do we want an ‘Angel Of The North’ here in Cardigan? I would be honoured to do it – and I would love to do it. 

“I see this developing as a community project in an industrial unit in Cardigan – and I don’t want to do a little horse: I want to do a big one! 

“You cannot overestimate the sense of importance a thing like that could have.” 

Mr Boyesen added that considerable money could be raised through crowd funding – as had been the case with the Cranogwen statue – for an art feature that could bring considerable income to the town. 

Cllr Catrin Miles described the concept of a giant horse and rider as ‘a really powerful image’, which would also give a nod towards Cardigan’s annual Barley Saturday parade. 

And Cllr Nick Bolton suggested a parcel of land near Cardigan Old Bridge just opposite the castle and the old hospital site as possible locations.