Welsh Slate

You hear so much about the history of Welsh slate and how it was shipped across the world to roof buildings, prized for its strength and weather protection. Even today, many slate roofs still look remarkably fresh, as if newly laid, despite standing for decades or even centuries.

The colour changes constantly with the weather, sometimes a deep blue-grey in dry light, other times shifting to red or purple tones when wet. That changing surface gives the landscape and buildings a living quality, always slightly different depending on the sky above.

Much of this came from the slate quarries of North Wales, particularly around Eryri National Park (Snowdonia), where Welsh slate was once regarded as some of the finest in the world. While extraction has greatly reduced today, its legacy remains across rooftops worldwide, still shaping the character of towns and villages far beyond the quarries where it was first cut.