The small village=
of Roche is to be found just h=
alf a
mile from the main A30 trunk road on the edge of 'china clay country' and surrounde=
d by
moorland. The ruined hermitage
built into the side of this prominent rocky outcrop was originally an early
15th.century chapel dedicated to St. Michael. It is known that the disused
chapel was then occupied by a solitary leper who made the rock his home in
order to avoid infecting others with his condition - cared for by his daugh=
ter Gundred who brought him water from a nearby hollow st=
one
said to ebb and flow with the tide. [ The redisc=
overy
of a natural spring emerging from a nearby solid rock would seem to support
this story. ] The rock itself is composed entirely of quartz and black
tourmaline and stands on the Michael line - a measurable 'energy line' linking a number of ancient elevat=
ed
sites dedicated to St. Michael including St. Michael's Mount at Marazion and Glastonbury Tor in
Somerset. =
&nb=
sp;
=