St Blazey

To the west of the village, in the heart of the china clay area, lies a disused pit that has become the centre of the ambitious and world-famous Eden Project, named after The Garden of Eden. Eden is the inspiration of Tim Smit, the leading light behind the rescue of the Lost Gardens of Heligan (see also Pentewan). The aim of this on-going project, one of the most successful enterprises ever undertaken in Cornwall, is to promote the understanding and responsible management of the vital relationship between plants, people and resources. At the bottom of a giant crater over 160 feet deep are the largest ‘biodomes’ or conservatories in the world where, in the space of a day, visitors can walk from steamy rainforests to the warmth of the Mediterranean. Throughout, the long and sometimes fragile relationship between man and plants is explored with a view to informing and educating visitors as well as looking ahead towards the future. In the midst of the complex, world, jazz and other genres of music are performed in a lawn-carpeted arena. These are either free day events or full-on concerts at night – Fleet Foxes, Primeval Scream and Pendulum are among the big names lined up for the 2011 Eden Sessions. Consult the website for news of events.

St Blazey’s Parish Church, at the south end of the village, dates from around 1440, and is dedicated to St Blaise, a 4th century bishop from Armenia, who after being discovered in prayer and unwilling to recant his faith, was thrown into a lake to drown. Blaise stood on the surface and invited his persecutors to walk out and prove the power of their gods; they drowned. When he returned to land, he was martyred by firstly being beaten, then his flesh was torn from his bones and only then was he finally beheaded.