Prospect of Cornwall

London: Robert Hale Ltd. Very Good/Very Good. 1986. First UK Edition. Hard Cover. 8vo 0709025858 Dust jacket complete, unclipped. Original cloth boards with bright gilt titling on spine. No ownership marks. Illustrated with B&W Drawings by James Lennon. 222 pages clean and tight. Cornwall's distinctive topography and isolated location at the south-western tip of Britain have long ensured its individuality. For centuries this near-island beyond the River Tamar has enjoyed an independence defined by its reliance upon local industries. Amongst these, tin and china clay mining, seafaring and cottage-building are as much part of the special Cornish character as the celebrated Padstow Obby Oss, Helston Furry Dance and ancient festivals such as the Gorseth Kernow. But traditional life in the Duchy is fast-changing, as a new and encroaching web of national commerce threatens the time-honoured ways and customs. The old fishing ports and mining villages are no longer remote from larger centres of population, whose wealth and modern industries both menace and rejuvenate the Cornish economy. What further changes are in store for this unique area of Britain? How far will the jealously guarded Cornish heritage be lost to progress and the onward march of advanced technology? Donald Rawe examines these and other questions in this comprehensive survey. With its wealth of detail and coverage of new and old themes, and many distinctive line drawings by local artist James Lennon, it presents a valuable contribution to the study of Cornwall past and present. .