The safest plan for a stranger to take, in order to find this
interesting monument, is to return to, and proceed on, the Morvah road
until nearly opposite Bosullow, where a path will be found, on the
right hand, leading to this ancient inscribed pillar, which is one of
the most important monuments in the west country, if not in the
kingdom. One side of the stone will be found inscribed with the words
Rialobran-Cunoval Fil, signifying that Rialobran, the son of Cunoval,
was here buried. The tradition of the country folks says that a king
slain in the battle of Gendhal moor, was buried here with all his arms
and treasures; and that the king stood nine feet high, which was found
to be the length of this pillar monument, when about half a century ago
an old curmudgeon of the neighbourhood upset the tombstone of
Rialobran, the son of Cunoval, in searching for the crock of gold,
which he, in common with many others, believed to be buried there. It
is not known whether he found any treasures by his digging, but he
caused the stone to fall face downward, in which position it remained,
little heeded, until 1862, when it was replaced by the Antiquarian
Society over the warrior’s grave.
A large tract of ground covered with furze and heath, surrounding this
monument, used to be called “Goon-men-scryfa” (inscribed stone downs.)