Mike's Cornwall: Tintagel

Monday, 25 January 2021

The Stone Inscription, King Arthur and Tintagel Castle

I photographed the above stone / slate quite a few years back. Some say that this has connections with the legendary King Arthur.

In the late 1990s archaeologists discovered pottery from the 5th and 6th centuries on the eastern side of Tintagel Castle, Cornwall. They also found the slate / stone as in the photo above. It was covering a 6th century drain.

On the slate is the rough inscription:

PATERN COLIAVFIT ARTOGNOV

It appears that someone called Artognov wanted people to know that he had made or built something at Tintagel Castle.

Professor Charles Thomas of Exeter University translated the inscription as, "Artognou, father of a descendant of Coll, has had this built"

This got many jumping to conclusions that Artognov was actually King Arthur, who is said, by some, to have been born in Tintagel Castle. See my post A Flavour of Tintagel Castle and the Story of King Arthur.

The date of the slate, 6th Century, ties in with the time King Arthur is said to have been born.

Unfortunately it is now generally accepted that the stone does not have any connection with King Arthur ... but experts aren't always right!

Part of Tintagel Castle

Tuesday, 24 November 2020

A Flavour of Tintagel Castle and the Story of King Arthur

Today a story and photos of King Arthur's Castle at Tintagel which sits high on the cliffs overlooking the Atlantic.

So what is the connection with King Arthur?

It is often said that King Arthur was conceived and born at the castle, but the story is not that simple.

At the time Uther Pendragon was the king of parts of England and he got the hots for - I mean he fell in love with Ygerna (or Ygraine or Igraine), wife of Gorlois (or Gerlas), Duke of Cornwall.

At a Feast Day Uther made it clear to Ygerna that he intended to have his way with her - in the nicest possible way. This made her husband a bit miffed, to say the least, so he took Ygerna to the fortified castle at Tintagel to keep her safe from the clutches of Uther.

So Uther had a problem but Merlin, the magician or wizard, came to his assistance.

With a magic spell or two Uther was disguised as Ygerna's husband.

Uther therefore was able to access Ygerna's bedchamber and to her in the biblical sense - and Arthur was conceived.

It seems that Gorlois died, or was killed, shortly after this earth moving event, so Uther and Ygerna were able to marry, thus legalising Arthur's birth.

Alfred, Lord Tennyson had a much simpler version. In his Idylls of the King, he describes how Atlantic waves brought the infant Arthur to the shore and Merlin then carried him to safety. Thus the cave at Tintagel has since been associated with Merlin and Arthur.

It's interesting to be surrounded by history and legends for a short while. Did King Arthur really walk these cliffs, along with his Knights of the Round Table - and what about the magician, Merlin - so many mysteries.

Of course there are always spoil sports who will claim that the castle was built after King Arthur was born and that the site was formerly a Celtic monastery.