Summary

A milestone of 1836.

Description

It is set into a garden wall (not of interest) at the south-west corner of the junction between the B3306 St Just to Zennor Road and the B3318 to Tregerest and Penzance. The stone is triangular on plan with a flat top and stands just over 1m high. There are inscriptions in sans serif capitals on two sides, each with two pointing hands in bas relief. The left-hand side reads: 'PENZANCE / 6 MILES. / PENDEEN / 1 MILES.'; the right-hand side reads 'ST JUST / 3 MILES / MORVAH / ZENNOR / 1836'. The stone is painted white with the lettering and pointing hands painted black.

History

The milestone is marked and labelled as 'Guide Stone' on the first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1880. It forms part of a group of similar stones with pointing hands situated in West Penwith which were erected in the mid-C19 (some have inscribed dates) at a time when the roads in the area became increasingly busy with heavy freight traffic related to the local mines and the foundry at Tregeseal in St Just which was established by Nicholas Homan in 1834.

Reasons for Listing

The milestone approximately 15m North-East of Chy Lowena Cottage, Higher Boscaswell is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Historic interest: it was erected at a time when there was an increase in freight traffic related to the prosperous mining industry in this area;
* Rarity: an unusual example of a stone that has carved pointing hands and is also inscribed with the date it was erected;
* Group value: it forms a group with other surviving milestones in West Penwith, a number of which are also listed.

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26675788

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Northamptonshire: Buildings of England Series (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  The green guide for historic buildings: how to improve the environmental performance of listed and historic buildings
• 
  Lancashire: Liverpool and the South-West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Essex: Buildings of England Series (Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Specifications for Building Conservation: Volume 1: External Structure: Practical Examples v. 2
• 
  Berkshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)