The area around Blaenavon is South Wales is one of the finest surviving examples in the world of a landscape created by coal mining and iron making in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The parallel development of these industries is one of the key dynamic forces of the world's first Industrial Revolution.
The Blaenavon industrial landscape is an exceptional illustration, in material form, of the social and economic structure of 19th century industry. Its components make up an outstanding and remarkably complete example of a 19th century industrial landscape. The area around Blaenavon bears eloquent and exceptional testimony to the pre-eminence of South Wales as the world's major producer of iron and coal in the 19th century. All the necessary elements can be seen including coal and ore mines, quarries, a primitive railway system, furnaces, the homes of workers, and the social infrastructure of their community.
The significance of the site is that the Blaenavon landscape is an exceptional illustration of the social and economic structure of 19th century industry. The components of the site make up a remarkable complete example of a 19th century industrial ensemble.