Elaine Morgan to become second statue of a real Welsh woman unveiled in Wales

Elaine Morgan will become the second statue of a real Welsh woman unveiled in Wales,

The statue of the writer and the author will be uncovered in Mountain Ash on March 18.

The first statue, Betty Campbell, was unveiled in the Central Square of Cardiff, in September of last year.

Elaine Morgan’s statue is currently being cast in the Castle Fine Art Foundry by sculptor Emma Rodgers, who created the statue of Cilla Black statue in Liverpool. The piece has been commissioned by the Monumental Welsh Women (MWW) statue campaign.

The money for the statue was raised through Apollo Developments, and contributions from the Welsh Government, the Moondance Foundation and some private donations.

Cranogwen, Lady Rhondda, Elizabeth Andrews, Elaine Morgan and Betty Campbell were part of a public vote by the BBC to select whose statue would be built in 2019. Betty Campbell won that vote, but statues of the other women are in the works as well.

Elaine Morgan was a Welsh writer for television and the author of several books on evolutionary anthropology. Her first book, The Descent of Woman, published in 1972, became an international bestseller translated into ten languages.

She also scripted some of the best-loved dramas in television history – including How Green Was My Valley and The Life and Times of Lloyd George.

📣We have a date! 📣The second statue of a real Welsh woman will be unveiled on March 18th in Mountain Ash. The beautiful sculpture of Elaine Morgan the dramatist & evolutionary theorist is currently being cast in the foundry @emmarodgersart #HiddenHeroines #5women5statues5years pic.twitter.com/WIuNxagewp

— Monumental Welsh Women (@women_welsh) February 9, 2022

A sculpture of Cranogwen, or Sarah Jane Rees, is also in the works after artist Sebastien Boyesen was chosen to will craft a life-size figurative sculpture that will take its place in Llangrannog, Ceredigion.

Cranogwen was at various times during the 19th century a mariner, poet, teacher, journalist, preacher and political campaigner.