Linkinhorne

Church House, Linkinhorne

Linkihorne is a small village north of Callington, boasting a lovely medieval church, with a nearby holy well dedicated to St Melor. A few miles away is The Hurlers stone circle, composed of three separate circles of standing stones

St Melor's Church

The bulk of the church dates to the 15th century but there is a 13th-century font from an earlier church on the same site. Look for 15th-century wall paintings and a medieval stone altar slab.

Several of the gravestones in the church were carved by an 18th-century stonemason named Daniel Gumb, who lived a hermit-like existence near the Cheesewring Quarry. Daniel Gumb's cave is a rough underground chamber with a tomb-like entrance. Gumb carved geometric designs into the roof of the chamber that made up his living quarters.

Holy Well

A few hundred yards down the hill from the parish church water bubbles out of the ground to form a sacred pool. The well, like the church, is dedicated to St Melor, and like the church, the well-head protecting the pool dates to the 15th century. A large niche over the well entrance looks as though it once held a statue of a saint. The well water was traditionally thought to help cure sprained legs in horses. It was also used for baptismal water in church services.

Immediately beside the church is the whitewashed country pub called the Church House Inn.