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Lanyon
Quoit is one of a group of structures known
as "Chambered Tombs", the oldest stone
monuments to remain in Cornwall,
having been built long before the pyramids
in Egypt.
They belong to the early part of the New Stone
Age (Neolithic) period some five to six thousand
years ago and predate the introduction of metal
tools by some two thousand years.
Believed to be the burial chamber of a long
mound, Lanyon Quoit is unusual in many ways and
may have been more of a mausoleum or cenotaph
than a grave. Recent theory suggests that these
megalithic monuments were never completely
covered by mounds but that their granite
capstone and front "portal stones" were left
uncovered to form a dramatic background to the
ceremonies performed there.
The
location of Lanyon Quoit makes it one of the best known
Cornish quoits. Situated on the road from Madron
to Morvah, its visibility from the road makes it
an easy site to visit. Lanyon Quoit collapsed
during a storm in 1815 damaging one of the
upright stones. Local residents rebuilt the site
in 1824 using the remaining three of the
original four uprights. The capstone was
re-erected (after being rotated ninety degrees),
on the remaining three uprights, these having
first been shortened and squared off. The
capstone's dimensions are 2.7 x 5.25m (9ft x 17½ft)
and it weighs 13½
tons.
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