Poole's Cavern

English: Poole's Cavern or Poole's Hole is a 2 million year old, [1] natural limestone cave south of Buxton in the Peak District, in the county of Derbyshire, England. A natural cavern, it forms part of the Wye system, and has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest.^[1] The name derives from an outlaw, Poole, who reputedly used cave as a lair and a base to rob travellers in the fifteenth century.^[2]^[3] Archeological explorations in 1981 and 1983 have suggested that the cave was occupied from the Bronze age. Some of the finds have been interpreted as suggesting that one of the chambers was used for religious purposes by Romano-Britons; an alternative explanation is that the cave was a metal-workers' workshop.^[4]

Entrance
Archaeological dig
The Flitch of Bacon
The Flitch of Bacon
The Flitch of Bacon
Victorian gas lighting
"Poached egg" stalagmites
"Poached egg" stalagmites
"Poached egg" stalagmites
Mary Queen of Scots Pillar
Sculpture Chamber
Sculpture Chamber

[1] English Nature: Poole's Cavern and Grin Low Wood

[2] Richard J. Huggett Fundamentals of Geomorphology

[3] Oldham, T. (2002) History of Poole's Cavern

[4] Myers A. An archaeological resource assessment of Roman Derbyshire. The East Midlands Archaeological Research Framework Project

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