prils ‘Monument of the Month’, submitted by Steve Hebdige:
First discovered in 1934 and large scale investigation carried out between 1950-1954, ‘My Monument of the Month’ is the early medieval settlement at Mawgan Porth (OS reference SW8511 6726) in the Parish of Mawgan in Pydar.
The site consists of at least three courtyard longhouses, two still accessible.
The photograph shows the completely excavated upper longhouse with small buildings attached around a courtyard. The walls are nearly ¾ m high. To the northwest, slightly uphill, is the associated re-buried cemetery. The insert shows the overgrown site before clearance.
In July 2014 the Newquay Old Cornwall Society Scrub Bashers group began to clear the site and have managed it ever since. In 2016 the monument was taken off the ‘At risk register’ for Scheduled Ancient Monuments.
The site is at the back of the Pitch and Putt course at Mawgan Porth. Visitors who wish to visit the ‘village’ should obtain an Historic England leaflet about the medieval settlement from the art and craft studio by the entrance to the green. The studio is run by Dave and Kara Barker.
The remains of the settlement are well worth a visit if you are in the area.
