A giant handwoven tapestry that has taken four years to complete and involved three generations of weavers will soon be displayed in Rhosygilwen's Neuadd Derwen.

Martin Weatherhead of Snail Trail Handweavers, Cilgerran, was inspired by the romance of Peredur from the White Book of Rhydderch.

Martin says that on first reading the Mabinogion he was struck by this intriguing imagery in Peredur's story. The image remained fixed in his mind for the next thirty years while he continued to weave rugs, wall hangings, baby wraps and scarves and teach weaving, spinning and dyeing to adults and children.

Retirement from teaching finally gave Martin the chance to realise his ambition of weaving the story, hand-dyeing all the fine threads to give it its special vibrancy.

With the end in sight Martin invited all eight of his family members to weave one leaf each and then he wove everyone's initials on the back of the turnover, thereby marking three generations.

The giant two by four metre handwoven tapestry is mediaeval in style. The tapestry has lettering above and below describing the scene in Welsh and English and depicts the magical valley encountered by Peredur in the course of his travels.

A tree stands half in flames and half untouched by the fire. There is a river flowing through the valley with a flock of white sheep grazing on one side and a flock of black sheep on the other side. When a white sheep bleats a black sheep crosses the river and becomes white and when a black sheep bleats a white sheep crosses the river and becomes black.

Martin is keen to exhibit the Peredur tapestry around Wales and beyond. The tapestry, has never been seen in full as it is rolled up while being woven. It will be unveiled at Rhosygilwen's Neuadd Derwen in the next two weeks.