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A History of

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Perranzabuloe

Elliot’s Shop Tamar Valley Protection Society, Saltash

Pears Soap Mevagissey Museum

SurfboardsPerranzabuloe Museum, Perranporth

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A History of

Cornwall - culture beyond the beachKernow - gonisogeth dres an treth

From Porthcurno to the Tamar, a History of Cornwall in 100 Objects explores Cornwall’s heritage through the many fascinating objects housed in the county’s museums, heritage sites, art galleries and historic houses.

Inspired by, and part of, the BBC’s History of the World in 100 Objects, over 60 venues in Cornwall have contributed objects large and small from their historic collections. The 100 objects explore the people, places and stories of the county.

During 2011, visitors can go into museums across the whole of Cornwall to see these objects on display.

Further information can be found at:www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

The project has been co-ordinated by Cornwall’s Museum Development Team. It has brought to light some wonderful, unexpected and quintessentially Cornish objects.

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1. Spratt’s Diary Porthcurno Telegraph Museum Once the ‘Nerve Centre of the Empire’, Porthcurno Telegraph Station connected Britain to the rest of the world through 150,000 miles of underwater telegraph cables. George Spratt, Assistant Superintendent, kept this fascinating diary from 1870 until 1900.

01736 810966

2. Mine Engine Levant Mine, near Pendeen

This engine was built around 1840 by Harvey’s of Hayle and installed in an engine house at Levant Mine to haul the ore out of Skip Shaft. This is the oldest Cornish mine engine in existence and still operates! It can regularly be seen steaming.

01736 786156

3. ‘Viva Geevor’ T-shirt Geevor Tin Mine, Pendeen

In 1985 the world price of tin collapsed and Geevor Tin Mine – one of the last remaining Cornish tin mines – launched a ‘Viva Geevor’ campaign to help save the mine. In 1986 the miners and their supporters marched to Downing Street, but the government did not help and the mine closed in 1990.

01736 788662

TR19 6JX www.porthcurno.org.uk

TR19 7SX www.nationaltrust.org.uk

TR19 6JX www.geevor.com

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4. Stoping Drill Geevor Tin Mine, Pendeen Stoping drills were used in extracting ore-bearing rock from mines all over Cornwall. Made in Camborne by the Cornish engineering firm Holman’s, this ‘silver stoper’ was used at Geevor in the 1970s and 80s. It was lighter than others and had an extendable leg for extra height.

01736 788662

5. Quernstones Wayside Museum, Zennor

Over two thousand years ago, quernstones were used for grinding corn and other grains and were a vital part of a Cornish Bronze-Age kitchen. These three quernstones come from the parish of Zennor - the stone would have been sourced from the cove below.

01736 796964

6. Newlyn Copper Plaques Newlyn Art Gallery

From the 1880s until the 1920s a community of British artists existed in Newlyn. They worked with the local fishing community to create employment and artistic pieces from local copper. These copper plaques, representing Earth, Air, Water and Fire were installed on the outside of Newlyn Art Gallery.

01736 363716

TR19 6JX www.geevor.com

TR19 7SX www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

TR18 5PZ www.newlynartgallery.co.uk

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7. Hurling Ball Penlee House Gallery & Museum, Penzance

Hurling was Cornwall’s national sport before rugby and is still played today. Hurling balls are the size of cricket balls and are made of applewood with a silver outer skin. This 1704 ball is inscribed in Cornish which translates as ‘Paul Parish - fair play is good play’.

01736 363625

8. Davy Safety Lamp

Penlee House Gallery & Museum, Penzance It is strange that renowned chemist Humphrey Davy, born in Penzance, is best known today for an invention made primarily to help coal miners and rarely used in Cornish mines. This is an early example of his safety lamp, manufactured around 1817.

01736 363625

TR18 4HE www.penleehouse.org.uk



9. Fisherwoman on a Beach

Penlee House Gallery & Museum, Penzance The artist Stanhope Forbes was a founder of the Newlyn School of painting, which changed the course of British art. This important study is an early preparatory work leading to his iconic painting, Fish Sale on a Cornish Beach of 1885.

01736 363625

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10. Dolly Pentreath St Michael’s Mount

This portrait shows Dolly Pentreath of Mousehole. Dolly was a Cornish fishwife who gained the reputation of being the last native Cornish speaker, though opinion is divided. It was painted in the 1770s by John Opie, a fashionable portrait painter from Cornwall.

01736 710507

11. Cork Model St Michael’s Mount

St Michael’s Mount is a Cornish icon. It has been an abbey, a fortress, and for 350 years, the family home of the St Aubyns. Henry Lee was the butler on St Michael’s Mount for 49 years and made this model in the 1930s. It is carved from champagne corks and took almost 3 years to complete.

01736 710507

12. Cooking Pot Marazion Museum Brass cooking pots were practical household items and traded over long distances. Made in Somerset, this rare pot dates from the 1690s. It is exactly the sort of object that a rich Marazion merchant would have owned.

01736 719411

TR17 0HT www.stmichaelsmount.co.uk

TR17 0HT www.stmichaelsmount.co.uk

TR17 0AP www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

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13. Folk Art Plaque St Hilary Heritage CentreThis painted panel, in the style of folk art, was made by Captain Willie Hopes of St Hilary. It shows Jesus Christ as the Good Shepherd and probably dates from the 1920s when St Hilary was nationally known for its Christmas Bethlehem play, broadcast annually on BBC radio.

01736 710229

14. Single Form Tate St Ives

Barbara Hepworth Sculpture GalleryBarbara Hepworth is internationally acclaimed as one of Britain’s most influential sculptors and worked from her studio in St Ives from 1949 until her death in 1975. Single Form (September), created in 1961, is a beautifully carved piece of polished walnut wood.

01736 796226

15. Huer’s Horn & Bushes St Ives Museum Until the early 1900s pilchard fishing was a major Cornish industry and pilchards were exported worldwide. From a good vantage point on the cliff a ‘huer’ would cry ‘Heva’ and use horns and semaphore bushes to indicate to waiting fishermen where the shoal was.

01736 796005

TR20 9DQ www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

TR26 1AD www.tate.org.uk/stives/hepworth

TR26 1PR www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

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16. Leach’s Wheel Leach Pottery, St Ives

Founded in 1920 by Bernard Leach and Shoji Hamada, the Leach Pottery in St Ives is probably the most famous and certainly the most influential studio pottery in the world. The smaller picture shows Leach’s potter’s wheel, on display at the Leach Pottery.

01736 799703

17. Scoria Block Hayle Community Archive

Copper ores from Cornish mines were smelted to produce metals. This process created a waste product called scoria. Until it closed in 1820, scoria from the Copperhouse Foundry at Hayle was shaped into blocks and used to construct many buildings in the town.

01736 753962

18. Delft Tile Godolphin House

In the late 17th century Godolphin was the largest house in Cornwall. This 1690 Dutch tile is from one of their 48 fireplaces and features the dolphin from the family coat of arms. The Godolphins made their fortune from tin mining and clearly enjoyed the fashions of the day.

01736 763194

TR26 2HE www.leachpottery.com

TR27 4DU www.haylearchive.org.uk

TR13 9RE www.nationaltrust.org.uk

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19. Bickford’s Safety Fuse Trevarno Estate, near Helston

In 1831 William Bickford patented the ‘safety furze’; a fuse which burned at a steady rate to detonate explosives. This greatly reduced the number of injuries in Cornish mines and became a global lifesaver. Bickford’s grandson bought Trevarno in 1874 from the proceeds of his grandfather’s invention.

01326 574274

20. Trengrouse’s Rocket Helston Museum

Inspired by witnessing the wreck of HMS Anson in 1807, Helston man Henry Trengrouse’s design saved the lives of many thousands of people. A rocket carrying a strong rope was fired between the cliffs and the wrecked ship and brought ashore the crew and passengers on a chair.

01326 564027

21. Football Medal Poldark Mine, near Helston By 1874 emigrating miners had established thriving Cornish communities in Mexico, mining for silver and gold. These miners introduced football to Mexico and this medal is from the first international football game in 1902. It was won by J.M. Rule, a miner from Camborne.

01326 573173

TR13 0RU www.trevarno.co.uk

TR13 8TH www.cornwall.gov.uk

TR13 0ES www.poldark-mine.co.uk

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23. Money Box King Edward Mine, near Camborne

When Cornish miners emigrated to work in newly-discovered mining areas around the world, they took with them elements of their Cornish culture. This pasty-shaped money box is from Mineral Point in Wisconsin, USA – a popular destination for Cornish miners in the 1840s.

01209 614681

24. Mine Engine Boiler

East Pool Mine (formerly Cornish Mines and Engines)

Pumping water out of Cornish copper mines became a great challenge in the 18th and 19th centuries as mines went deeper. Cornish inventor Richard Trevithick developed a far more efficient steam engine than earlier designs. This early Trevithick boiler is from a mine engine of the 1820s.

01209 315027

TR14 9DP www.kingedwardmine.co.uk

TR14 9DP www.kingedwardmine.co.uk

TR15 3ED www.nationaltrust.org.uk

22. Tin Stamps King Edward Mine, near Camborne

Stamps were large noisy machines used to crush ore from Cornish mines. Californian stamps, developed during the gold rush in America in the 1840s, were an improvement on early Cornish stamps. They were introduced into Cornwall by the end of the 19th century.

01209 614681

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25. Arrowheads Redruth Town Museum, near RedruthRedruth Old Cornwall Society. South west of Redruth stands the hill of Carn Brea. Hundreds of flint arrowheads have been discovered at Carn Brea, dating from the Neolithic period between 3700 and 3400 BC.

01209 215084

27. John French’s Diaries Redruth Town Museum, near RedruthRedruth Old Cornwall Society. John French, Redruth-born miner, joined the First World War in France in 1915 as a ‘sapper’. His job was to tunnel underneath the German defences. He diaries record life in the trenches.

01209 215084

26. William Murdoch Bust Redruth Town Museum, near RedruthRedruth Old Cornwall Society. In 1779 Scottish engineer William Murdoch came to work in Redruth. A prolific inventor, he improved the efficiency of steam engines used in Cornish mines and invented household gas lighting.

01209 215084

28. Rugby Shirt Redruth Town Museum, near Redruth

Redruth Old Cornwall Society. Rugby is the now the main sport of Cornwall. This Royal Cornwall Rugby Union shirt dates from 1991 when Cornwall won the County Championship and the Cornish ‘army’ turned Twickenham black and gold.

01209 215084

TR16 4HN www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk




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29. Methodist Font Constantine Heritage CentreJohn Wesley introduced Methodism to Cornwall in the 18th century and the Cornish took to Methodism more than any other county. This moveable font, dating from about 1880, was used in the chapel at Constantine for baptisms. The chapel now includes Constantine’s Heritage Centre.

01326 340404

30. Dix Constantine Heritage Centre

Granite quarrying was a major industry in Constantine; it was shipped out for the streets and bridges of London and exported worldwide. Harry Phillips, nicknamed Dix after Dixie Dean the footballer, was a granite worker all his life. In 2000 Annie Mulaly, a local artist, made this sculpture.

01326 340404

31. Wartime Cartoon Pendennis Castle, Falmouth Cornwall played a significant part in the Second World War. In 1942 a successful major assault was launched from Falmouth to destroy the German-occupied French harbour of St Nazaire. This collection of wartime cartoons by George Butterworth is now housed at Pendennnis.

01326 316594

TR11 5AA www.constantineheritage.org.uk

TR11 5AA www.constantineheritage.org.uk

TR11 4LP www.englishheritage.org.uk

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32. Mail Bag National Maritime Museum Cornwall, Falmouth

For more than a hundred and fifty years, until around 1850, Falmouth was the world’s post office and packet ships ran regular mail services to the Empire. This canvas mailbag reads ‘HMS Crane Letters for England’. It may be one of the last ever carried on a Falmouth packet ship.

01326 313388

33. Curlew National Maritime Museum Cornwall, Falmouth

In 1881 Falmouth was a cosmopolitan town with consulates and languages from all around the world. Ships would call in to Falmouth ‘for orders’ to find out where to take their cargoes for the best price. Quay punts, such as Curlew, serviced these bigger ships.

01326 313388

34. Ellen MacArthur’s Food National Maritime Museum Cornwall, FalmouthFalmouth has a place in history for being the first or last port for ships and adventuring sailors. In 2005 over 8000 people welcomed home Ellen MacArthur after a record breaking 71-day around-the-world solo voyage. Dame Ellen had dried food to last well beyond the 71 days; this one is for day 74.

01326 313388

TR11 3QY www.nmmc.co.uk



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35. Along Shore Fishermen Falmouth Art Gallery

Charles Napier Hemy painted this picture in 1890 from sketches made on his floating studio off St Anthony Lighthouse. Hemy lived the last half of his working life in Falmouth and became a celebrated marine artist. He enlivened his pictures with a splash of colour – in this case the red hat.

01326 313863

36. Glasney College Finds Penryn Museum

Glasney College, founded in 1265, was one of the most important of Cornwall’s religious institutions. Its church dominated Penryn for almost 300 years and it was the birthplace of many Cornish plays. An excavation in 2003 revealed these significant tiles and pieces of architectural stonework.

01326 372158

37. Saracen’s Head Crest Penryn MuseumSince the early 17th century, the Saracen’s Head has been the symbol of Penryn town. It is thought to refer to pirates from North Africa who operated off the Cornish coast at this time. This Saracen’s Head once stared out from the door of Lavin’s, the local clothing shop.

01326 372158

TR11 2RT www.falmouthartgallery.com

TR10 8LT www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

TR10 8LT www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

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38. Opie’s Paintbox St. Agnes Museum

This mahogany paintbox belonged to renowned artist John Opie. He was born near St Agnes but left for London where his style of portrait painting soon became popular with the wealthy upper classes. In 1806, he was appointed Professor of Painting at the Royal Academy.

01872 553228

40. D-Day Mascot UniformPerranzabuloe Museum, PerranporthCornwall was one of the main training grounds for the 1944 D-Day landings. This uniform belonged to Jacqueline Fewins, the 3 year-old mascot of the 224th Battalion 29th Division of the 9th Army of the United States, based at Perranporth.

01872 573321

39. Passmore Edwards Bust St. Agnes Museum

John Passmore Edwards was Cornwall’s best known philanthropist. He was born at Blackwater and in his lifetime funded the construction of twenty public buildings in Cornwall as well as many more around the country. 2011 marks the centenary of his death.

01872 553228

41. Stool Perranzabuloe Museum, Perranporth

In 1889 an explosives factory opened near Perranporth. It produced dynamite, used in mines in Cornwall and exported worldwide, and was later owned by Alfred Nobel, founder of the Nobel Peace Prize. This wooden stool came from this factory when it closed in 1918.

01872 573321

TR5 0PA www.stagnesmuseum.org.uk

TR6 0BW www.perranzabuloemuseum.co.uk

TR5 0PA www.stagnesmuseum.org.uk


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42. Surfboards Perranzabuloe Museum, Perranporth

Cornwall has some of the best surfing beaches in the country. Bellyboard surfing became popular at Perranporth in the early 1920s and early ‘coffin boards’ were made by Tom Tremewan, local builder and coffin maker.

01872 573321

44. Cider Mill Dairyland, near Newquay

Cider was once the staple drink of Cornish farm workers and apple orchards were far more common than they are today. This apple mill and horse round came from Pill Farm at Lostwithiel and produced 315 gallons of cider per hour.

01872 510246

43. Souvenir Beach Hut Dairyland, near Newquay

Newquay Old Cornwall Society. When the mineral railway started running passenger services in 1876, Newquay became a popular holiday destination. By 1893 postcards of Newquay were showing bathing huts, like this souvenir china miniature.

01637 873064

45. Cornish Kayles Trerice, near Newquay

Cornish gentry, like the Arundells of Trerice, enjoyed bowling on immaculate lawns. The working classes played nine-pin kayles, also known as keels or skittles, often in pubs. These kayles probably came from a pub in Newquay and are over a 100 years old.

01637 875404


TR8 5AA www.dairylandfarmworld.com

TR5 0PA www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

TR8 4PG www.nationaltrust.org.uk

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46. Burial Urns Royal Cornwall Museum, Truro

With the exception of a flourishing trade in tin and copper, Cornwall was still rather remote from the main centres of Roman Britain. These two recycled cooking pots contain the cremated ashes of an eldery Roman woman who died at Tregony in the 2nd century AD.

01872 272205

47. Gold Necklace Royal Cornwall Museum, Truro

This necklace was made from Cornish gold found in tin stream works near Ladock Church in 1802. It was presented to wealthy landowner Sir Christopher Hawkins of Trewithen. Small quantities of gold have been found in other parts of Cornwall.

01872 272205

48. Rashleigh’s Mineral CollectionRoyal Cornwall Museum, Truro Cornwall’s rich and diverse mineral wealth attracted many mineral collectors. One of the most significant collections belonged to Philip Rashleigh of Menabilly near Fowey. He started to collect minerals in the 1760s and continued until his death in 1811.

01872 272205

TR1 2SJ www.royalcornwallmuseum.org.uk



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49. Ox Shoes Gerrans Heritage Centre

Oxen were the main beast of burden on Cornish farms from medieval times until the 1850s, when they were replaced by horses and tractors. This pair of ox shoes was found at Tregaire Farm in the parish of Gerrans. Unlike horseshoes, ox shoes were made in two pieces.

01872 580588

50. Souvenir China Gerrans Heritage Centre

In March 1891 the West Country was hit by ‘The Great Blizzard’. Trains and livestock were buried by freak snow storms, and many ships were sunk. The Carl Hirschberg, shown on this commemorative china set, was wrecked at Portscatho.

01872 580588

51. Croggon’s Boots Grampound with Creed Heritage Centre

Grampound was once a hub for producing leather in Cornwall and exported leather worldwide. Croggon’s Tannery in Grampound worked from 1712 to 2002 and was the last surviving traditional Cornish tannery. These children’s boots come from Croggon’s shop display.

01726 882734

TR2 5EF www.gerransheritage.co.uk

TR2 5EF www.gerransheritage.co.uk

TR2 4QS www.grampound.org.uk/heritage_project

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52. Mirror Trewithen House, near Grampound

This Georgian mirror is one of a pair that still hangs in its original place at Trewithen House and dates from the early 18th century. It once reflected the colourful lives of the fashionable Hawkins family of Trewithen.

01726 882763

54. Foot Stool Mevagissey Museum

In the 19th century, it was not only miners who left Cornwall in search of a better life. John Varcoe, a Mevagissey builder, set up a successful building business in Kansas City, USA. John’s mother embroidered this eagle and sent it to John who made it into a cover for a stool.

01726 843568

53. Tree Box Caerhays Castle, near Gorran

New and exotic varieties of trees and plants were being introduced into Cornwall in the 19th and early 20th centuries. This box was used in the 1900s by noted ‘plant hunters’ Ernest Henry Wilson and George Forrest whilst travelling the world collecting plants for J.C. Williams of Caerhays.

01872 501310

55. Pears Soap Mevagissey Museum

Andrew Pears was born in Mevagissey and apprenticed as a hairdresser in Fowey in 1789. He went to London to seek his fortune and began to experiment with making rouges, creams and soaps. He invented Pears Soap which soon became a household name.

01726 843568

TR2 4DD www.trewithengardens.co.uk

PL26 6QR www.mevagisseymuseum.co.uk

PL26 6LY www.caerhays.co.uk

PL26 6QR www.mevagisseymuseum.co.uk

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56. Wine Bottle Heligan Gardens, near Pentewan

This type of glass wine bottle is well known in Cornwall. Dating from the late 18th century, it has the crest of the Tremayne family and would have been stored on its side to prevent the wine becoming ‘corked’. The Tremaynes were Victorian garden pioneers.

01726 845100

57. Cooper and Tools St Austell Brewery

The barrel-making skills of a cooper were vital for the export of many Cornish products, including pilchards and china clay. A skilled trade, coopers were also needed when St Austell Brewery was set up by Walter Hicks in 1851 to serve miners and china clay workers.

0845 2411122

58. Cornish Porcelain Wheal Martyn, near St Austell

This blue and white china cup and saucer was one of the first made of Cornish china clay, between 1768 and 1780. These early experimental pieces were very important in the creation of English porcelain. Alongside tourism, china clay is still a major Cornish industry.

01726 850362

PL26 6EN www.heligan.com

PL25 4BY www.staustellbrewery.co.uk

PL26 8XG www.wheal-martyn.com

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59. Cornish Bricks Wheal Martyn, near St Austell

Granite has long since been the iconic building stone of Cornwall, but from the 16th to the 20th centuries, many Cornish houses were also built of Cornish bricks. Bricks were stamped with the name of the brickworks and some were made from waste sand and clay from the china clay industry.

01726 850362

60. Cornet Wheal Martyn, near St Austell

Music has always been a mainstay of Cornish life and culture. In the industrial heartlands of the china clay and mining areas, silver and brass bands became popular in the 19th century. This modern cornet comes from the Bugle Silver Band, founded in 1848 and still playing today.

01726 850362

61. HMS Anson Beam Support Charlestown Shipwreck & Heritage Centre In 1807 the Sailing Ship HMS Anson ran aground near Helston with the loss of over 100 lives. The wreck inspired a witness, Henry Trengrouse, to invent a global life-saving device. This beam support from the wreck of the Anson was recently restored.

01726 69897



PL25 3NJ www.shipwreckcharlestown.com

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62. Contents of a Garderobe Fowey Museum

During a recent excavation in Fowey, archaeologists discovered the contents of a medieval garderobe – a toilet! Scientific analysis provides a fascinating insight into the Cornish menus of the day! Over time, this has filled up with other interesting rubbish.

01726 852458

64. Crucifixion Figure Lostwithiel Museum

Although the right arm is missing, this gilded figure of the crucified Jesus Christ, from the late 12th century, is an important example of medieval art and religion in Cornwall. It was found in a field near Lostwithiel in 1894 and then lost again until 1994, hidden in a desk.

01208 873341

63. Turpin’s Caulking Tools Fowey Museum

Mr Turpin was a boatbuilder in Fowey in the 19th century at a time when ships were in great demand to export Cornwall’s copper, tin and china clay. Caulking was a part of the boat-building process, ensuring that the gaps between the timber planks were fully waterproofed.

01726 852458

65. Gorsedd Robes Lostwithiel Museum

The Cornish Gorsedd exists to maintain the national celtic spirit of Cornwall through literature, music, history and language. These Gorsedd robes, which belonged to Mr R. Santo, were worn at the 1989 Gorsedd which celebrated the 800th anniversary of Lostwithiel.

01208 873341

PL23 1AT www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

PL22 0BW www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

PL23 1AT www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

PL22 0BW www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

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66. Harlyn Bay Cemetery Finds Padstow Museum

In 1900 an ancient cemetery was discovered at Harlyn Bay near Padstow. This cemetery provides an interesting insight into the lives and deaths of Cornish people from the Bronze Age onwards. As well as a dagger, brooches and pins, several complete human skeletons were found.

01841 532752

67. Obby Oss Padstow Museum

May Day festivities in Padstow are one of Cornwall’s most famous and enduring folk customs, celebrating the arrival of summer. There are now two horses or ‘osses’ in the celebrations, one red and one blue. This oss was used from 1948 until 1975.

01841 532752

68. Bevil Grenville Prideaux Place, Padstow

During the English Civil War, Bevil Grenville was Cornwall’s best-loved Royalist leader. He was killed in 1643 near Bath after remarkable Cornish successes at the battles of Braddock Down and Stratton. The portrait came to Prideaux Place from the Grenville family home in North Cornwall.

01841 532411

PL28 8AL www.padstowmuseum.co.uk

PL28 8AL www.padstowmuseum.co.uk

PL28 8RP www.prideauxplace.co.uk

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69. Flamank Coat of Arms Bodmin Town Museum

In 1497, outraged by tax increases, Thomas Flamank and Michael An Gof marched on London at the head of a Cornish rebel army. Defeated, they suffered the death of traitors – hung, drawn and quartered. This coat of arms comes from the old Flamank home near Bodmin.

01208 77067

70. Belling Clock Bodmin Town Museum

From clocks to Baby Belling cookers, Belling is now an international brand. This clock was made by the first John Belling at Bodmin in 1753 and clock-making became a thriving trade in Cornwall. Five generations of Bellings lived and worked in Bodmin.

01208 77067

71. Asylum Dress Bodmin Town Museum

Once the mere whisper of the name of Bodmin’s Lunatic Asylum, later St Lawrence’s Hospital, was enough to strike fear into the hearts of Cornish men and women. Thankfully, today attitudes to mental health have changed. This dress, from the 1890s, was typical for a female patient.

01208 77067

PL31 2HQ www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk



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72. Cradle and Patchwork Quilt Cornwall’s Regimental Museum, Bodmin (formerly Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry Museum)

In 1857, during the Indian Rebellion, the 32nd Cornwall Regiment of Foot defended 510 women and children trapped for five months inside a British Compound. During this ‘Siege of Lucknow’, it is reputed that damage to this cradle occurred and the quilt is said to be made from the uniforms of fallen soldiers.

01208 72810

73. Steam Locomotive Bodmin and Wenford Railway

The coming of the railway at the end of the 19th century opened up Cornwall as a tourist destination. This Drummond T9 locomotive, built in 1899, worked the Atlantic Coast Express Service from Waterloo to Wadebridge and Padstow.

01208 73555

74. Lanhydrock Atlas Lanhydrock House

Joel Gascoyne was one of the first people to accurately map Cornwall. The Lanhydrock Atlas dates from the mid 1690s and shows the land belonging to the wealthy Robartes family of Lanhydrock House. At that time, the family owned land in over half the parishes in Cornwall.

01208 265950

PL31 1EG www.cornwalls-regimentalmuseums.org

PL31 1AQ www.bodminandwenfordrailway.co.uk

PL30 5AD www.nationaltrust.org.uk

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75. Delabole Slate North Cornwall Museum, Camelford

For hundreds of years, slate has been quarried at Delabole and exported around the world. As well as being used on roofs, slate was used for other items including rolling pins and in the production of 78 RPM records. The quarry is still the main local employer.

01840 212954

76. Election Decanter and Glasses Tintagel Old Post Office At one time Cornwall had 44 MPs - more than any other English county. Until 1832, the Borough of Bossiney (BB) had two MPs and held elections in the old town hall at Tintagel. There were usually only nine or ten voters and votes could be bought for £150.

01840 770024

77. Cloam Oven Tintagel Old Post Office

Cloam or earthenware ovens were a standard fitting for many kitchen fireplaces in Cornwall until the 1930s. At the Old Post Office in Tintagel, the cloam oven is now being fired up again and used to bake cakes and bread.

01840 770024

PL32 9PL www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

PL34 0BD www.nationaltrust.org.uk

PL34 0BD www.nationaltrust.org.uk

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78. Mercury Bottle Museum of Witchcraft, BoscastleMercury, or quicksilver, was regarded as a living mystical metal, beloved of witches and sages. This small bottle of mercury and its ring of shells, was used by a wise woman living in Penzance in about 1905. She earned money by using it to forecast the weather for Cornish fishermen, who were very superstitious.

01840 250111

79. Armbands Davidstow Airfield

The Women’s Land Army, also know as ‘Land Girls’, worked in farming to replace the men who had gone to war. Women from cities worked alongside Cornishwomen on farms in Cornwall during both World Wars. A brightly coloured armband was awarded for time served - one diamond per year.

01208 816311

80. Silver Penny Lawrence House Museum, Launceston

A thousand years ago Cornwall minted its own coins. This penny was made in Launceston. Following his victory in 1066, William the Conquerer issued coins like this across the whole of England and built a castle in Launceston to subdue the Cornish.

01566 773277

PL35 0HD www.museumofwitchcraft.com

PL32 9YF www.cornwallatwarmuseum.co.uk

PL15 8BA www.lawrencehousemuseum.org.uk

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81. Floor Tile Lawrence House Museum, Launceston

Richard, Earl of Cornwall from 1227 until 1272, was one of the most powerful men in Europe and the younger brother of King Henry III. Richard’s Cornish base was at Launceston and this floor tile, from Launceston Priory, shows his coat of arms – the lion.

01566 773277

82. Bone Ship Model Lawrence House Museum, Launceston

The Napoleonic wars of the early 1800s had a great impact on Cornwall and French prisoners of war were held at Lawrence House in Launceston. To pass the time and to earn a little money, the men often made items from animal bone, such as this very detailed ship model.

01566 773277

83. John Couch Adams Bust Lawrence House Museum, LauncestonThe astronomer John Couch Adams, from Laneast near Launceston, was jointly credited with the discovery of the planet Neptune in 1846. This bust was made by Neville Northey Burnard, a well-known Cornish sculptor of the time.

01566 773277




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86. Souvenir China Castle Heritage Centre, Bude

The Victorians and Edwardians enjoyed taking home souvenir china decorated with the name of their holiday location. By the late 19th century in Bude, as in other Cornish resorts, there was a thriving local industry selling these keepsakes. Many of these pieces were actually made in Germany.

01288 357300/2

EX23 8LG www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

84. Fossil Fish Castle Heritage Centre, Bude

In the 1930s, the fossilized remains of a fish over three hundred million years old, were discovered near Bude and classified as a unique new species, Cornuboniscus Budensis. Bude’s fossil fish is found nowhere else in the world.

01288 357300/2

85. Oxy-hydrogen Blowpipe Castle Heritage Centre, Bude

One of the remarkable achievements of the scientist Sir Goldsworthy Gurney, born in Bude in 1793, this oxy-hydrogen blowpipe produced a bright light, ‘limelight’. Limelight was used to illuminate theatres until the end of the 19th century and lit the House of Commons for 60 years.

01288 357300/2



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89. Ingot of Tin Looe Museum

This ingot is evidence of Cornwall’s early tin trade. Cornwall traded tin and copper throughout the Roman Empire and imported luxury goods such as wine. Recovered by a local diver from the seabed off Looe Island, this tin ingot is thought to be about 2,000 years old. 01503 262070

87. Smuggler’s Sword Polperro Museum of Smuggling and FishingDue to heavy taxes, Cornish smuggling reached its peak in the late 1700s and Polperro’s isolated position made it ideal for bringing ashore contraband goods such as brandy, tea and tobacco. This sword belonged to Robert Mark, who was killed by a cannonball from a custom’s ship whilst unloading contraband off Polperro in 1802.

01503 272427

88. Polperro Knitfrock Polperro Museum of Smuggling and FishingThe fishing village of Polperro had their very own style of knitted jumpers known as ‘knitfrocks’. In the mid 19th century, 28 women and girls were employed in the village as knitters. Each family had their own dedicated pattern so that any man lost at sea could be identified if his body was found.

01503 272427

PL13 1BP www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

PL13 2RB www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

PL13 2RB www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk

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90. Civil War Helmet Liskeard and District Museum

This helmet belonged to Major Thomas Johnson, a Parliamentarian soldier who fought at the battle of Braddock Down in 1643. The helmet is unusual because the cloth camouflage, which prevented the light reflecting off the metal, has survived. The padding, which made it more comfortable to wear, is also still in place.

01579 346087

91. Rice’s Nuisance Book Liskeard and District Museum

In the 1800s, social campaigner Henry Rice transformed Liskeard, bringing piped water and sewers to the town and designing many new buildings. In notebooks called ‘nuisance books’, he recorded his inspections of the insanitary, over-crowded conditions of the poor.

01579 346087

92. Miner’s Hat & Balmaiden’s Clogs Liskeard and District MuseumCornish copper mining was at its peak in the early 19th century. For protection, miners wore these hardened felt hats, or ‘tulls’. Women and girls called balmaidens worked on the surface of Cornish mines and required heavy-duty footwear.

01579 346087

PL14 3JE www.visitcornwallmuseums.co.uk



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93. Photographer’s Chair Liskeard and District Museum

Photography started early in Cornwall and became an important way of staying in touch as more people emigrated overseas. This chair was a studio prop and had interchangeable backs. It was first used by Michell and Son of St Austell in 1870 who subsequently relocated their business to Liskeard.

01579 346087

94. Tea Treat China Callington Heritage Centre

Chapel teas or ‘tea treats’ were one of the most anticipated days of the year in Cornwall in the 19th century. Everyone wore their best clothes and a high tea was served using the local Methodist chapel’s own china. Games or sports usually followed, making for a grand social occasion.

01208 821215

95. Edgcumbe Altar Frontal Cotehele House

This intricate textile piece was made for the Edgcumbe Family of Cotehele around 1500 and is a rare example of an altar frontal which survived the Reformation of the mid 16th century. It has been painstakingly hand stitched and shows Jesus and the twelve Apostles.

01579 351346


PL17 7HA www.callingtonheritage.org.uk

PL12 6TA www.nationaltrust.org.uk

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96. Shamrock Cotehele Quay

Shamrock is the last surviving River Tamar barge. She was built in 1899 and had a colourful 70 year working life including transporting fertiliser, prospecting for tin in St Ives bay and operating as a salvage vessel in Plymouth.

01579 351346

97. Dock Dung Saltash Heritage Museum and Local History CentreHorse dung from the streets around Devonport Dock was much sought after by Cornish farmers and used as fertiliser in the fields around Saltash and Calstock until 1913. Swept up with the manure were items such as beads, broken china, marbles, clay pipe ends, coins, buttons and children’s toys.

01752 848466

98. Elliot’s Shop Tamar Valley Protection Society, Saltash

Elliot’s shop – now a museum – reminds us how shopping in Cornwall used to be. Frozen in time, these brands and products stir fond memories. It finally closed its doors in 1973 after 70 years of trading; Frank Elliot, the last shopkeeper, blamed decimalization and high business rates.

01752 843388

PL12 6TA www.nationaltrust.org.uk

PL12 6JQ www.saltash-heritage.org.uk

PL12 6JQ www.tamarprotectionsociety.org.uk

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99. Richard Carew Antony House, near Torpoint

Elizabethan gentleman Richard Carew was born at Antony House in 1555. His 1602 Survey describes in detail the Cornish landscape and the occupations and recreations of its inhabitants. This is the first and one of the most important studies of the history of Cornwall.

01752 812191

100. Estate Workers in a Kitchen Mount Edgcumbe, near TorpointIn the 19th century, estate workers and domestic servants were a significant workforce on the large estates in Cornwall but were seldom shown in paintings. Noted artist Nicholas Condy painted many pictures of Mount Edgumbe estate, including this one and another of the servants, around 1840.

01752 822236

Please check opening times directly with each venue.

Some objects may be viewed by appointment only out of season.

For further information please contact Cornwall’s Museum Development Team on [email protected]

IMAGE COPyRIGHT: Bernie Petterson, The National Trust Picture Library and individual museums.

PL11 2QA www.nationaltrust.org.uk

PL10 1HZ www.plymouth.gov.uk/mountedgcumbe

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