Pendour Cove facts for kids
Pendour Cove is a beautiful beach located in west Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom. You can find it about one mile northwest of the small village of Zennor. It sits right next to Zennor Head.
The name "Pendour" comes from the old Cornish language. 'Pen' means 'end' or 'head', and 'dour' means 'water'. So, it means something like 'end of the water' or 'head of the water'.
The Legend of the Zennor Mermaid
Pendour Cove is famous for a magical local story called the Mermaid of Zennor. People say that if you sit above the cove on a warm summer evening as the sun sets, you might hear a faint song. This song is believed to be from Matthew Trewella, a young man from Zennor. He fell in love with a mermaid and followed her into the sea, never to be seen again.
Matthew Trewhella was known for being handsome and having a wonderful singing voice. Every evening, he would sing the last hymn by himself at the church in Zennor. A mermaid who lived in nearby Pendour Cove heard his singing and was completely charmed by it.
To hide her long tail, the mermaid wore a long dress. She walked, though a bit awkwardly, to the church. At first, she just listened to Matthew's amazing singing. Then she would quietly slip away and return to the sea. But she kept coming back, day after day, and grew bolder, staying longer each time.
One evening, during one of her visits, Matthew and the mermaid looked at each other. They instantly fell in love. However, the mermaid knew she had to go back to the sea. If she stayed on land, she would die. As she got ready to leave, Matthew begged her not to go. He asked who she was and where she came from.
The mermaid told him she was a creature from the sea and had to return. Matthew was so deeply in love that he promised to follow her anywhere. He carried her to the cove, and then he followed her beneath the waves. No one ever saw him again.
The legend says that if you sit above Pendour Cove at sunset on a clear summer evening, you might still hear Matthew's singing. It's a soft sound carried on the breeze. This famous legend also inspired a song called "Mermaid" in 1980, sung by the Cornish folk singer Brenda Wootton.
Pendour Cove's History and Art
At the parish church of St. Senara in Zennor, visitors can see a special carved wooden pew-end. This carving is over 600 years old! It shows an image of the legendary mermaid, reminding everyone of the famous story.
Pendour Cove has also inspired famous artists. A British artist named Dame Barbara Hepworth was a well-known abstract sculptor. She lived in Cornwall for many years. Between 1947 and 1948, she created a sculpture named Pendour. This artwork is now part of the collection at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, D.C., USA.
