St Newlyna’s is the parish church at St Newlyn East, inland from Newquay. Its surviving fabric includes medieval work and later restoration, making the building itself a better guide to its architectural history than a single founding legend.
A fig tree growing from the church wall is associated with a local warning against picking its leaves. The tradition connects the plant with the saint, but it should not be treated as proof that the living tree is as old as the story’s setting.
The church links the village’s religious history with the folklore explored in Tim’s fig-leaf article. Nearby East Wheal Rose and the Preaching Pit belong to other periods in the same community’s life.
Where it is
St Newlyna’s Church, St Newlyn East
50.366893, -5.054237 · Position source: https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1137190
Listed church building, NHLE grid SW8289156349
Visiting and access
A location reference, not confirmation of public access or a visitor entrance.
Sources
Source: https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1137190 Source: https://www.plant-lore.com/plantofthemonth/st-newlinas-fig-tree/