'Stone stories' Cornish hedge labyrinth opens on Bodmin

It is an intriguing piece of land art, a hymn to the almost-lost craft of Cornish hedging and also – perhaps – an optimistic message from the early 21st century to future generations.

- Steven Morris

As the sun rose over Bodmin Moor on spring equinox morning, a Cornish bagpipe struck up and Kerdroya, five years in the making and built to last four millennia, was officially opened. The work, 56 metres in diameter, is a labyrinth made of Cornish hedges (unique structures comprising stone and turf) commissioned to mark 60th years since Cornwall's landscapes received official protection.

Will Coleman, the bagpiper and labyrinth creator, was feeling exhilarated as the spring sunshine began to warm Kerdroya – a Cornish word that can be translated as Castle of Turnings – and the first visitors arrived. "It's been hard work but really worth it. I'm delighted we're finally open. Every stone here tells a story."

That makes a lot of stories. More than 140,000 stones have been laid to create half a kilometre of winding hedging. In all, 1,000 volunteers and 5,000 children have helped build it and more than 150 people have been trained in the craft of hedging, rated as endangered by Heritage Crafts.