Minions

In the heart of the former 18th century granite, copper and lead mining belt of Bodmin Moor is the village of Minions. Here you can walk along the disused mineral railway and the surrounding area also offers a wealth of archaeological interest from early Bronze Age onwards. This was also the setting for EV Thompson’s historical novel, Chase the Wind. Today, a former mine engine house of the Phoenix Mine has become the Minions Heritage Centre, which covers over 4,000 years of life on the moorland and includes the story of mining as well as the life and times of much earlier inhabitants of this area.

Close to the village stands The Hurlers, a wide complex of three stone circles dating from about 1500 BC. The purpose of these stark upright stones is not known, though local lore declares them to be men turned to stone for playing the Celtic game of hurling (a form of hockey) on the Sabbath. Visitors from all over the world come to dowse the stone circles, claiming to feel energy emanating from them. A line drawn through the centres of the circles points to Rillaton Barrow, a large burial mound known as ’tumulus’. In 1837 a gold, corrugated cup was found within the barrow; this is now in the British Museum, with a copy in the Royal Cornwall Museum in Truro.