Black and white

Acc.no: PEZPH : 2016.50.852

Identification

Item: Chun Castle Hill Fort, near Penzance.

Description: A view of the ruins of Chun Castle Hill Fort, near Penzance. Constructed entirely of stone, this 3rd century BC castle translates from the Cornish 'Chy Wun' as 'House on the Hill'. 280 ft in diameter, with two concentric walls and an external ditch of rock 20ft wide, 4ft deep, 6.5ft thick and 7ft high, the inner wall was 15ft - 22ft thick tapering to a bottleneck gateway. Stone was taken from here to build Madron workhouse and Penzance streets. A well in the inner courtyard was 12 ft deep. It was re-occupied in the early AD centuries, having 15/16 stone houses built around the inner courtyards, some over the circular Iron Age huts, probably to protect the nearby local tin mines. Legend has it that the original castle was built by Jack the Tinner to store tin en route to ports at Marazion or St Ives and is on the 'Tinners Track'. Source: 'Belerion' by Craig Weatherhill 1981.

Condition: Good

Description

Material: Photographic paper

Production

Method: Printed

Category: Photography

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