 | |
  Shown within Southwest Cornwall | |
| Location | Cornwall |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 50°08′51″N5°35′57″W / 50.14750°N 5.599167°W Coordinates: 50°08′51″N5°35′57″W / 50.14750°N 5.599167°W |
| Type | Dolmen |
| History | |
| Periods | Neolithic |
| Site notes | |
| Ownership | National Trust |
Lanyon Quoit is a dolmen in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, 2 miles southeast of Morvah. It collapsed in a storm in 1815 and was re-erected nine years later, and as a result the dolmen is now very different from its original appearance.
Lanyon Quoit is located northwest of Penzance on the road between Madron and Morvah. It stands 50 metres to the east of the road.
700 metres to the west lie the remains of another dolmen known as West Lanyon Quoit. [1]
Lanyon Quoit currently has three support stones which stand to a height of 1.5 metres. [2] These bear a capstone which is 5.5 metres long, [3] and which weighs more than 12 tonnes. [4]
In the eighteenth century the quoit had four supporting stones and the structure was tall enough for a person on horseback to ride under. On 19 October 1815, Lanyon Quoit fell down in a storm. [5] Nine years later enough money was raised by local inhabitants to re-erect the structure, under the guidance of Captain Giddy of the Royal Navy. One of the original stones was considered too badly damaged to put back in place, thus there are only three uprights today and the structure does not stand so high as it once did. [4] One of the uprights was turned at right-angles when the quoit was re-erected, but that is the only part of it which had its orientation changed. The cap stone is still aligned much as it was before the monument fell. [6] The quoit lies at the north end of a long barrow 26 metres long and 12 metres wide. [7] The barrow, which is covered by grass and bracken, is damaged and its outline is difficult to see. [3] At the south end of the barrow are some more large stones that may be the remains of one or more cists. [3]
In 1769 William Borlase described the megalithic site for the first time in a publication, illustrated with etchings in which the Lanyon Quoit's design and floor plan has a different look from today, given changes made following its 1815 collapse. [8] Lanyon Quoit collapsed in a storm in 1815 and was re-erected in 1824.
An etching from 1857 by R. T. Pentreath shows the megaliths in their present arrangement. [9] A similar drawing appears in the 1864 book A Week at the Land's End by John Thomas Blight. [10]
In 1872 William Copeland Borlase, a descendant of the earlier Borlase, conducted further investigations and excavations were carried out. [11] He reproduced the etchings of his ancestor and found them much more valuable than any other contemporary sketch since the monument had been subjected to such considerable change.
In 1952 the then owner Edward Bolitho from Tregwainton donated the plot of land with the monument to the National Trust.
The Mên-an-Tol is a small formation of standing stones in Cornwall, UK. It is about three miles northwest of Madron. It is also known locally as the "Crick Stone".
The Hurlers is a group of three stone circles in the civil parish of St Cleer, Cornwall, England, UK. The site is half-a-mile (0.8 km) west of the village of Minions on the eastern flank of Bodmin Moor, and approximately four miles (6 km) north of Liskeard at grid reference SX 258 714.
Chûn Quoit is one of the best preserved of all Neolithic quoits in western Cornwall, United Kingdom.
The Merry Maidens, also known as Dawn's Men is a late neolithic stone circle located 2 miles (3 km) to the south of the village of St Buryan, in Cornwall, United Kingdom. A pair of standing stones, The Pipers is associated both geographically and in legend.
The Tregiffian Burial Chamber is a Neolithic or early Bronze Age chambered tomb. It is near Lamorna in west Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is a rare form of a passage grave, known as an Entrance grave. It has an entrance passage, lined with stone slabs, which leads into a central chamber. This type of tomb is also found in the neighbouring Isles of Scilly.
Trethevy Quoit is a well-preserved megalithic structure between St Cleer and Darite in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is known locally as "the giant's house". Standing 9 feet (2.7 m) high, it consists of five standing stones capped by a large slab and was added to the Heritage At Risk register in 2017.
Boskednan stone circle is a partially restored prehistoric stone circle near Boskednan, around 4 miles northwest of the town of Penzance in Cornwall, United Kingdom. The megalithic monument is traditionally known as the Nine Maidens or Nine Stones of Boskednan, although the original structure may have contained as many as 22 upright stones around its 69-metre perimeter.
William Copeland Borlase was a British antiquarian and Liberal politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1880 until 1887 when he was ruined by bankruptcy and scandal.
Bosporthennis is a hamlet south of Treen in the civil parish of Zennor on the Penwith peninsula in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.
Zennor Quoit is a ruined megalithic burial chamber or dolmen, located on a moor about a mile (1.6 km) east of the village of Zennor, Cornwall, England, UK. It dates to 2500–1500 BC. Aside from the 12.5-tonne (12,500 kg) roof, which collapsed some time between 1770 and 1865, the chamber is in good condition.
Stannon stone circle is a stone circle located near St. Breward on Bodmin Moor in Cornwall, England.
Duloe stone circle or Duloe circle is a stone circle near the village of Duloe, located 5 miles (8.0 km) from Looe in southeast Cornwall, England, UK.
Fernacre, also known as Fernacre stone circle or Fernacre circle, is a stone circle located on the slopes of the De Lank River, 1.25 miles (2.01 km) northeast of St Breward on Bodmin Moor in Cornwall in the United Kingdom.
Carwynnen Quoit is a dolmen belonging to the Neolithic period, at Carwynnen near Camborne in west Cornwall. It is also known as 'The Giant's Quoit', 'The Giant's Frying Pan', 'Pendarvis Quoit' and 'Pendarves Quoit'. It collapsed in 1966 and was re-erected in 2014.
Brane Barrow, or Chapel Euny Barrow, is a Neolithic entrance grave located near the hamlet of Brane, Cornwall, England, UK. It is considered to be one of the smallest and best preserved burial monuments in Britain.
Boswens Menhir, also known as Boswens standing stone, or the Long Stone, is a standing stone 3 kilometres northeast of St Just in Penwith, in Cornwall, England.
Mulfra Quoit is a Neolithic dolmen in the county of Cornwall in England. It stands on Mulfra Hill to the north of the hamlet of Mulfra.
Mên Scryfa is an inscribed standing stone in Cornwall, United Kingdom. The inscription, dating to the early medieval period, commemorates "Rialobranus son of Cunovalus."
West Lanyon Quoit, also known as Lower Lanyon Quoit, is the remains of a prehistoric dolmen situated in the parish of Madron in Cornwall grid reference SW423337. It was excavated in the late 18th century, and much of the structure has since been destroyed.
Lesquite Quoit, is a portal dolmen, located near Lanivet in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is a ceremonial funerary monument built around 3500 - 2600 BC and used by Britain's early farming communities. There are only 20 portal dolmens surviving in the United Kingdom. Many have suffered from stone-robbing and degradation over time. This example is well preserved, and is a scheduled monument. In 1870, J. Polsue recorded that the local tradition was of the stones "having been thrown to their present location from Helman Tor by the Devil playing quoits."
Media related to Lanyon Quoit at Wikimedia Commons
