• Descent 298 publication date

    Our June/July issue will be published on Saturday 8 June

    Now with four extra pages as standard. If you want to receive it as part of your subscription, make sure you sign up or renew by Monday 27 May.

    Click here for more

Shakespeares Cave

Ship-badger

Member
The large entrance passage of Shakespeares Cave, before it enters the rift, has quite obviously been enlarged by mining. Does anyone know when this was done, and for what purpose?
 

mudman

Member
I must admit to always having wondered this myself.

Considering the proximity to the stream I've always thought that it is unlikey to have been created as a shelter. I suppose it could have been a trial adit that was given up on very quickly and the path down from Devil's Bridge may have been safer when it was created to allow easier access to miners. But, isn't it well below the coal measures and so unlikely to strike a coal seam? What else could these miners have been trying to find? Ironstone?
 
Top