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Summary

Kent's cavern. The long arcade. Charcoal was found in some of the natural basins. A thin black line of charcoal was found in the granular stalagmitic floor, composed of charred wood and straw with small polished flint pebbles, shells and burnt animal bones embedded in it. Other bones and a black flint were found beneath this layer. The cave earth yielded some animal bones and two flint implements.

Location

Protected Status

• Scheduled Monument 1010745: Kent's Cavern, Torquay

Other References/Statuses

• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX96SW/4/31

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• CAVE DEPOSIT (Palaeolithic - 698000 BC to 8001 BC (Between))

Full description

Untitled Source (Migrated Record). SDV316704.

Kent's cavern. The long arcade. Charcoal was found in some of the natural basins. A thin black line of charcoal was found in the granular stalagmitic floor, composed of charred wood and straw with small polished flint pebbles, shells and burnt animal bones embedded in it. Other bones and a black flint were found beneath this layer. The cave earth yielded some animal bones and two flint implements. A. A mottled white flint. It was irregular in form, flat on one face and doubly carinated on the other. It was found in february 1872 in the first foot level of cave earth with a portion of grey flint nodule, apparently fractured artificially. B. A bluish-grey flint, semi-lunar in outline. It was found on 10th february 1872 with the teeth of hyena and of horse in the third foot level of cave earth. C. A well-marked incisor of machairodus latidens. It was found in july 1872 in the first foot level of cave earth. D. A tool of white flint. It was a hammer-like core, broad at one end and round-pointed at the other, and was formed by several flakes having been struck from the original nodule. Its pointed end showed that it had been used as a hammer. It was found in august 1872 in the granular stalagmitic floor. The breccia contained the remains of bears only. The cave earth yielded the bones and teeth of hyena and other animals, and coprolite. Bones, teeth and eight flint flakes and chips were found in the excavated material discarded by macenery. Twenty-five flint implements in all were recovered from the cave earth. E. A light grey flint with a sharp edge all round its perimeter. It was nearly flat on one side, slightly convex on the other, from which four principal longitudinal flakes had been dislodged. It was of lanceolite type, and was found in february 1873. F. A flint of the same type, but more massive, and abruptly truncated at each end. It was very concave on the inner face on which a bulb of percussion was well displayed near the point. The outer face was very convex. It had not been used. It was found in march 1873 with a tooth and a gnawed scapula. Seventeen more flint implements were found in the breccia. These were more rudely formed and more massive than those from the cave earth. G. An angular flint chip was found in the first foot level of cave earth, with bear teeth and eleven balls of coprolite, in december 1873. H. A symmetrical tongue-shaped tool of chert. It was worked to an edge all round the perimeter, except at the butt end where a portion of the original surface remained. It was convex on both faces. It was found in december 1873 in the second foot level of cave earth, beneath the granular stalagmitic floor.

Untitled Source (Migrated Record). SDV316705.

Pengelly, w. /tda/16(1884)330-356/the literature of kent's cavern, part 5.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events: none recorded

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