Giant's Quoit

Carwynnen Quoit is a Neolithic portal dolmen near Camborne in west Cornwall. It stands on a gentle west-facing slope between two small tributaries to the Red River. The site is also known as the Giant’s Quoit, the Giant’s Frying Pan, Pendarvis Quoit and Pendarves Quoit. The dolmen has a capstone measuring about 3.3 metres long and 2.5 metres wide, weighing around ten tons. It was rebuilt in 2014 after collapsing in 1966. The monument has a long history of scholarly attention. The antiquarian Edward Lhuyd recorded it around 1700, and William Borlase drew the first plan in 1769. James Sowerby illustrated a yellow lichen on the stones in 1803. The field was called Frying Pan Field in 1840. After the 1966 collapse, the site lay on the ground until The Sustainable Trust bought it in 2009. Visitors find a restored Neolithic dolmen set in a quiet landscape. The capstone sits on three upright stones, two in their original footings. Archaeological work in 2012 involved local schools and the community. An open day displayed finds and explained the restoration. The site now offers a clear view of one of Cornwall’s rare portal dolmens.