Plen-an-gwary

For the hamlet in Redruth, Cornwall, see Plain-an-Gwarry.

A 'plain-an-gwarry' ("playing place") in St Just in Penwith.
An audio clip of the Cornish Language pronunciation of 'Plen'

A plen-an-gwarry or plain-an-gwary (Cornish: Plen an Gwari), is a "playing-place" or round, a medieval amphitheatre found in Cornwall. A circular outdoor space used for plays, sports (especially Cornish wrestling),[1][2] and public events, the plen-an-gwary was a Cornish variant of a construction style found across Great Britain. Formerly common across Cornwall, only two survive nearly complete today: the Plain in St Just in Penwith (50°07′28″N 5°40′51″W / 50.1245°N 5.6807°W / 50.1245; -5.6807 (Plen an Gwari, St Just)) and Saint Piran's Round near Perranporth (50°20′54″N 5°07′24″W / 50.3482°N 5.1234°W / 50.3482; -5.1234 (Saint Piran's Round, Rose)).[3][4][5]

The theatre area could be used for local gatherings, sports events, and production of plays. Cornwall culture had a type of play called miracle plays, written in the Cornish language, that were meant to spread Christianity. To capture the attention of the audience, "the plays were often noisy, bawdy and entertaining."[3] The most important work of literature surviving from the Middle Cornish period is Ordinalia, a 9000-line religious verse drama which had probably reached its present form by 1400. The Ordinalia consists of three miracle plays, Origo Mundi, Passio Christi and Resurrexio Domini, meant to be performed on successive days. Such plays were performed in a plain-an-gwarry.[3]

  1. ^ The Independent, 19 November 2000.
  2. ^ A tramps visit to Gwennap Pit and Redruth fair, The Cornishman, 9 June 1881, p8.
  3. ^ a b c St Just Plain-an-Gwarry. Historic Cornwall. Retrieved 23 September 2012.
  4. ^ St Piran's Round. English Heritage National Monuments. Retrieved 19 September 2012.
  5. ^ St Piran's Round - map. English Heritage National Monuments. Retrieved 19 September 2012.