Cornwall's Hidden History Blog
Not far from the town of St Columb Major you can find the Nine Maidens Stone Row in a field a short distance from the busy road. This type of ancient monument is something of a rarity. In fact, when the Nine Maidens was first scheduled in November 1928 it was thought to be the […]
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Chun Quoit, one of Cornwall’s best preserved prehistoric monuments, is spectacularly located high on a hill in West Penwith. Leaning with your back against it’s sun-warmed stones you can see for miles, expansive views across moorland, farmland and out to sea. But what was this structure for and what did it represent to the people […]
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The coastline around Newquay bristles with rocky headlines. Penhale Point, Kelsey Head, Pentire Point, Towan Head, Park Head, Griffin Point . . . Jutting out into the ocean like the jagged teeth of an ancient comb. Many of these promontories were the refuge places of early man. Geologically and physically advantageous sites where cliff castles […]
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The secluded Fernacre Stone Circle is one of the largest of Cornwall’s ancient circles. And, along with its near neighbour Stannon Circle, is also one of the oldest and the most northerly on Bodmin Moor. Interestingly it has also been suggested that this particular stone circle was quite literally pivotal in the positioning of many […]
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Droskyn Point towers above Perranporth beach. The crashing waves of the Atlantic beat its rocky cliffs. But this spectacular headland hides an ancient secret. Hidden down a steep, narrow path is thought to be the earliest known evidence of mining in Cornwall. Beginnings . . . The origins of tin mining in Cornwall are hazy […]
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There are over nine hundred stone circles across the British Isles. Roughly twenty or so of those can be found in Cornwall. However, it is almost impossible for us to know exactly how many such monuments were actually built by our ancestors. An unknown number of circles have been lost or destroyed in the thousands […]
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I have been in love with the Isles of Scilly since spending time there as a teenager. I was lucky to have a friend who worked for a while at the Tresco Abbey Gardens and I was able to stay with her for free. A few years ago I went back and spent a blissful […]
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Something is hiding beneath the waters of Stithians Lake. And at certain times of the year, when the level drops low enough, these wonderful artefacts, carved more than 4000 years ago, reveal themselves. When Stithians Dam was completed in 1967 the shallow valley behind it was completely flooded. Nearly 300 acres of farmland and three […]
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“These simple but powerful relics of the past will turn anyone into a romantic.” E. C. Axford, 1975 The moors are my escape. I find contentment there whatever the season, even on the wettest and wildest of days. A few days ago it was one of those sunny days when the fluffy white clouds seem […]
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Some place names can really create an atmosphere and evoke a feeling. They can be signpost to a place’s past. A waving flag that acknowledges some event or episode in our cultural history. Names are, after all given, given by us. And because of this for me Hangman’s Barrow near Crowan has its own particular […]
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