Many remain in Cardiff, including the statues of Lord Ninian in the civic centre and 'The Elf' in St Fagans.

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The institution said it remained committed to delivering key projects, including the redevelopment of St Fagans: Natural History Museum and providing a National Museum of Natural Sciences.

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The museum currently employs 650 staff at sites across Wales, including Cardiff, St Fagans, the National Waterfront Museum in Swansea and the National Slate Museum in Llanberis.

BBC: National Museum Wales: 23 posts go, 111 jobs to change

Also open to the pubic for free from 1 April are the flagship Museum of Welsh Life at St Fagans, near Cardiff, the Roman museum at Caerleon and the Turner House Galley in Penarth.

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These later included the man who went on to found the Welsh folk museum at St Fagans, scholar and poet Iorwerth Peate, whose former home in Lon-y-Dail is now honoured with a blue plaque.

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The exhibition also explores other Welsh links with Antarctica - a geologist from St Fagans, a stowaway from Newport and the Antarctic work of a zoologist from St Brides Major who later became director of the National Museum.

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