Badger Hole, Warton Crag

Reasons for Designation

Palaeolithic caves and rock shelters provide some of the earliest evidence of human activity in the period from about 400,000 to 10,000 years ago. The sites, all natural topographic features, occur mainly in hard limestone in the north and west of the country, although examples also exist in the softer rocks of south-east England. Evidence for human occupation is often located near the cave entrances, close to the rock walls or on the exterior platforms. The interiors sometimes served as special areas for disposal and storage or were places where material naturally accumulated from the outside. Because of the special conditions of deposition and preservation, organic and other fragile materials often survive well and in stratigraphic association. Caves and rock shelters are therefore of major importance for understanding this period. Due to their comparative rarity, their considerable age and their longevity as a monument type, all examples with good survival of deposits are considered to be nationally important.

The Palaeolithic caves of Lancashire and Cumbria form a significant regional group of which Badger Hole is an important example with surviving unexcavated deposits.

Details

Badger Hole lies c.20m up the west face of Warton Crag. It occupies a prominent position c.5m below the surface of the plateau with commanding views over the reclaimed salt marsh of Morecambe Bay. The cave consists of a single chamber, about 5m long by 3m wide, with a partially blocked passage leading inward. The mouth of the cave is relatively low and looks out onto a platform approximately 6m long and 1.5m wide. Excavations in the mouth of the cave and the chamber have uncovered material from a number of periods, including the Roman and the Late Upper Palaeolithic. The latter consisted of lithic artefacts, but no faunal remains. Further archaeological deposits survive in the area of the entrance platform and cemented to the walls of the main chamber. The scheduling includes the cave and the deposits which extend in an arc of 1.5m out beyond the cave entrance.

MAP EXTRACT The site of the monument is shown on the attached map extract.

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

13252

Legacy System:

RSM

Sources

Books and journals
Jackson, J W, Lancs., with remarks on the contents of two adjacent caves in Further Report Upon The Excavations at Dog Holes, Warton Crag, Vol. 28, (1911)

End of official list entry

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