Cornwall Life: August 2019 81This summer’s other exhibition
is by Dutch artist Allard van
Hoorn who undertook an artistic
residency in St Ives. His short
films document a decade of
projects influenced by his travels
tate.org.uk
ST MICHAEL’S MOUNT
Even the journey to St Michael’s
Mount, just off the coast at
Marazion is magical. You can
make the trip from shore to island
in a boat or, if the tide is right,
walk across the causeway.
The mount is one of Cornwall’s
most familiar landmarks with
its own place in history and
mythology. It was home to Bronze
Age settlers and after the Norman
conquest in 1066 monks from
Normandy modelled the church
and priory here on their own
place of worship, Mont St Michel.
It became a place of pilgrimage
where four miracles are said
to have happened in the mid-
17th century. The island’s steep
terrain is topped by a castle and
legend has it that Jack the Giant
Killer defeated Cormoran who
terrorised the locals.
St Michael’s Mount is also a
family home – the St Aubyns
have lived here for more than two
centuries – and you can admire
the beautiful Victorian gardens
and terraces stocked with plantsGUIDE TO SUMMER
which thrive in this microclimate.
Discover the reality of life on the
island which more than 30 people
call home.
stmichaelsmount.co.ukTHE LOST GARDENS
OF HELIGAN
The story of the gardens at
Heligan – home to the Tremayne
family for more than 400 years- is both tragic and romantic.
For centuries they supplied fruit,
vegetables and flowers for the
estate. When World War I wiped
out almost all of the workforce,
the gardens fell into decline – the
final blow being the devastating
hurricanes of 1990. Tim Smit
(later to build the Eden Project)
and John Willis, a Tremayne
descendant, stumbled on a tiny
room used by the gardeners
with an inscription on the wall
‘Don’t come here to sleep or
slumber’ dated August 1914.
Today there are more than 200
acres of restored land. Visitors
can explore woodlands, meadows
of wildflowers, walled gardens,
grounds and the farm. This
summer Heligan celebrates the
bumblebee and the butterfly in
a summer of wildflowers and
outdoor adventure with crafts
and games devoted to these
tiny creatures.
heligan.com
TOP: At low
tide visitors can
approach St
Michael’s Mount
via the Causeway
BELOW: The
Italian garden at
The Lost Gardens
of Heligan©National Trust Images/Hugh Mothersole