Memories Sought and Surveyed

Carwynnen Quoit is a megalith belonging to the Neolithic period and built at or before 3000BC. A meeting of the Cornish Gorsedd was held here in 1948 but today it is a collapsed heap. It has too much history and folklore attached to be left like this, and so the Sustainable Trust has bought the site with the intention of re-erecting it and recovering an important part of our cultural legacy. The Quoit is situated on the old Pendarves Estate, an area rich in heritage and natural resources, and adjacent woods show signs of early tin streaming.

Carwynnen, or Pendarves, Quoit is reputed to have once been used by a Giant as furniture and was also known as 'the Devil's Frying Pan.' In the 1920s it was also reputed to have been haunted by a child. A geophysical survey will help reveal some of its archeological secrets and an oral history project will help to uncover its more recent importance to local identity. The picture to the left is of a 1925 summer pilgrimage by the Camborne branch of the Old Cornwall Society, and while you may not recall that particular day if you should have any memories of this Quoit, recent or ancient, then please contact the Sustainable Trust on 01209 831718. They have also produced an education pack which can be found online at www.cornwallheritagetrust.org.