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Kents Cavern, Devon

The limestone of the Kents Cavern area near Torquay in Devon was deposited at the bottom of a tropical sea, just south of the equator 385 million years ago. Slow movement of tectonic plates eventually brought this limestone to its present northerly position as part of Britain. For the last two to three million years Britain has been subject to a succession of warm and cold periods. It was at this time that the caves formed, carved by water moving through fissures, and dissolving the limestone rock. Each warm interglacial period left behind a stalagmite floor, formed by stalagmites shattering in the intense cold of a previous cold stage. This process of successive stalagmite formation and shattering sealed evidence of human and animal occupation in a sequence of layers in the cave floor. The earliest recorded excavations at the caves are dated by inscriptions on stalagmites. William Petre left his mark in 1571, and Robert Hedges in 1688. A Roman Catholic chaplain Father MacEnery working for Oxford University started recording finds at the cave between 1525 and 1529. MacEnery discovered stone tools low in the cave floor layers, indicating ancient human activity far older than 6000 years which the Bible supposedly revealed as the age of the world. On presenting these findings he was warned to stop digging, because what he found conflicted with a biblical view of the Earth's origin. MacEnery's notes were terribly muddled, which did not help their reception. They were probably muddled because poor MacEnery was himself confused and unsettled by what he had found. It seems he censored himself as much as he was censored.

William Pengelly led serious excavation in 1865, his efforts continuing until 1880. He and his team recovered eighty thousand objects, and removed nine thousand tons of material, all with the help of one donkey and local volunteers. Agatha Christie's father, who lived in Torquay, was an enthusiastic volunteer on the dig. Building on the discoveries of MacEnery, Pengelly calculated from stalagmite growth rates that stone tools found under them had to be over half a million years old. These were crucial findings in changing the accepted view of Earth's history.

 

 

Since 1903 Kents Cavern has been owned by the Powe family. Originally used as a workshop for making beach huts, Leslie Powe turned the caves into a tourist attraction. London Zoo opened in 1847 and brought people face to face with apes and their human-like behaviour. Similarly tourist attractions like Kents Cavern brought people into a world where vast periods of time sat brooding around them. Places like this helped to confirm the general acceptance of a new world view. The historical importance of Kents Cavern is reflected in its status as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The lost life of humans who lived in these caves is vividly recreated during cave tours. At one point all lights are turned off, and the darkness is then relieved by stone age shell lamps. These lamps consist of large flat shells filled with kindling on which animal fat had been dripped. Standing in the light of these shell lamps it is easy to appreciate the emotional impact that caves had on people. In France cave systems were decorated with pictorial and sculptural art, no doubt given extra life by the flickering flames of shell lamps. Tour guides at Kents Cavern point out various rock formations that look like, for example, Michael Jackson! Stone age people did not have celebrities to see in the rock shapes, but they might have seen other things. The ever changing rock shapes and quality of light seems to invite such imagination. At Kents Cavern there are "Ghost Shows" organised for children. Initially this might seem as nothing more than a stunt to keep the visitors coming in. But in fact these shows might actually reveal a psychological truth about the caves and the way people related to them. They were places of refuge, and places where rudimentary imaginations began to run riot. Leroi Gourham has studied cave art at Trois Freres in southern France. There is a collection of art laid out along the tortuous course of an underground river. Gourham thinks that art in these cave systems was part of a ritual where people symbolically struggled through difficult caves, the impact of images heightened by flickering fire light, fearful darkness, and the route's arduous nature. We might picture a cross between a ghost train ride at a funfair, and an army assault course. Ritualistic journeys through these tunnels perhaps served as a kind of training. In darkness and difficulty there was an intense bonding experience, and inculcation of reverence to higher authority, probably embodied in a leader/holy man. We use the word religion to describe this combination of bonding, training, and reverence. Art and religion possibly have their origins in dark caves like Kents Cavern. It is ironic that caves eventually provided evidence to challenge a religious view of Earth history.

You can combine a visit to Kents cavern with a walk around the English Riviera Geopark. This walk which begins and ends at the Cavern visitors' centre, takes you past many interesting geological features. There are Devonian limestone cliffs, dating to around 350 - 400 million years ago, and at Black Head there is an area created by the eruption of underwater volcanoes. Hope's Nose has an excellent example of a raised limestone beach, left above the present sea level at the end of the last Ice Age. Maps detailing the route are available free of charge from Kents Cavern shop. The walk takes about two hours, and is relatively easy going, although parents with buggies and wheelchair users should take a slightly modified route, joining the walk at Marine Drive, as described on the map available from the Cavern.

A range of educational activities are organised for all age groups. Contact the Cavern for more details.

There is a restaurant and shop at the visitors' centre.

 

Directions: Kents Cavern is one mile from Torquay Harbour in Devon. Follow brown signs off the A380. Click here for an interactive map centred on Kents Cavern. Postcode TF1 2JF.

Opening Times: Opening is daily from 9am. Timed tours then run throughout the day. Closing times vary with season. During July and August last tour is at 4.30pm. There are also evening events Wednesday to Friday - Cavern Ghosts and Scare Show. Ring ahead to book.

September to October, last tour is at 4pm.

November to February, last tour is at 3.30pm.

The caves are closed 25th and 26th December and from 11th - 15th January.

Access: Wheelchair access is only possible to the first chamber. A DVD virtual tour is available. Temperature in the caves is a constant 14 degrees, so you might want to take a jacket.

Contact:

telephone: 01803 215136

e-mail: caves@kents-cavern.co.uk

web site: http://www.kents-cavern.co.uk/