Cave Hunting / Researches on the evidence of caves respecting the early inhabitants of Europe

by William Boyd Dawkins

Figs. 84, 85, 86, 87.—Four Views of Flint Implements found in the Hyæna-den at Wookey Hole, near Wells.

In 1860 we resumed our excavations; and, in addition to the above remains, found satisfactory evidence of the former presence of man in the cave. Our search was rewarded by one oval implement of white flint, of rude workmanship ([Figs. 84, 85, 86, 87]), one chert arrow-head, a roughly-chipped and a round flattened piece of chert, together with various splinters of flint, which had apparently been knocked off in the manufacture of some implement. Two rudely-fashioned bone arrow-heads were also found, which unfortunately were subsequently lost by the photographer to whom they were sent; they resembled in shape an equilateral triangle with the angles at the base bevelled off. All were found in and around the same spot, in contact with some hyæna-teeth, between the dark bands of manganese, at a depth of four feet from the roof, and at a distance of twelve feet from the present entrance ([Fig. 83], a).

That there might be no mistake about the accuracy of the observations, I examined every shovelful of débris as it was thrown out by the workman; while the exact spot where they were excavating was watched by my colleague. The figured implement was picked out of the undisturbed matrix by him; the rest were found by me in the earth thrown out from the same place.

The lines of peroxide of manganese must have been accumulated on the old floors of the cave, because they were associated with numerous splinters and gnawed animal remains; and there can be no doubt that the latter were introduced by the hyænas. Those animals have a peculiar habit, as Dr. Buckland proved by experiment, of gnawing similar bones in precisely the same way; and a comparison of the relics of the meals of the hyænas in the Zoological Gardens with those in the cave, shows that the latter have passed between the jaws of a like animal that once inhabited Somersetshire. Coprolites of the same animal were very abundant, and in some places formed a greyish-white layer of phosphate of lime. There were also other equally unmistakeable traces of the animal in fragments of bone, polished by their tread, as in the Kirkdale cave. It is, therefore, only reasonable to suppose that these remains of animals were brought into the cave from time to time by hyænas, and left on the floors. That they were not introduced by water is proved by the preservation of the delicate processes and points of bone, which would certainly have been broken in transitu. Since, then, the implements, which, beyond doubt, had been fashioned by man, were underneath one of these old floors, it was certain that man was contemporary in the district with the hyæna and the animals on which it preyed, and the fact that they were found only on one spot implies that they were deposited by the hand of man. To suppose that a savage would take the trouble to excavate a trench twenty-four feet long—for twelve feet of the former mouth of the cave had been cut away—with miserable implements, and consequently with great labour, and having excavated it again to fill it up to the very roof, is little less than absurd. Nor could such an operation take place in such a deposit, without the stratification of the layers being destroyed. The absence of pottery and human bones precludes the idea of the cave ever having been a place of sepulture, such as Aurignac or Bruniquel. This discovery, therefore, of itself stamps the contemporaneity of man with the extinct mammalia, and following close on the similar discoveries in Brixham cave, to be mentioned presently, puts the question beyond all doubt.

In April 1861 we resumed our excavations; and, as we made our way inwards, found that the cave began to narrow, and ultimately to bifurcate, one branch extending vertically upwards, while the other appeared to extend almost horizontally to the right hand. As we reached the middle constricted passage, the teeth became fewer, while the stones were of larger size than any that we had hitherto discovered. The great majority of the gnawed antlers of deer were found at this part, also the posterior half of a cervine skull, the right upper jaw of wolf, and, what is more remarkable, a stone with one of its surfaces coated with a deposit apparently of stalagmite: this, however, was much lighter than stalagmite, and not so good a conductor of heat; and, on analysis, I found that it consisted of phosphate of lime, with a little carbonate, and a very small portion of peroxide of manganese. Doubtless the surface of the stone, covered with phosphate of lime, formed part of the ancient floor of the cave, and hence was coated with album græcum; while the lower part, being imbedded in the earth on the floor, was not so coated. This deposit may, perhaps, explain the absence of round balls of coprolite, which, assuming that the cave at the time was more damp than that at Kirkdale, would be trodden down on the floor by the hyænas, instead of presenting a rounded form. The stone also itself exhibits tooth-marks underneath the coating of album græcum, and probably was gnawed by the hyænas, like the antlers, for amusement. This discovery proves that violent watery action had but small share, if any, in filling the cave; for in that case the soft covering would have been removed from the stone. Similar evidence is offered by the wonderful preservation of some of the more delicate fragments of bone, such as the palatine process of the maxilla of the wolf.

The section made in cutting this passage presented irregular layers of peroxide of manganese, full of bony splinters, and each more or less covered by a layer of bones in various stages of decay. These layers were absent from the upper portion of the passage. There were masses of prisms of calc-spar scattered confusedly through the matrix. After excavating the vertical branch as far as we dared (for the large stones in it made the task dangerous), we were compelled to leave off, having penetrated altogether only thirty-four feet from the entrance. No flint implements rewarded our search this year. Teeth were far more numerous than bones, probably because they are more durable as well as because of their rejection by the hyænas. One jaw was bitten in two, and the fragments found about a foot apart in the undisturbed matrix, just as they had been dropped from the mouth of the hyæna.

In the spring of 1862 Mr. Parker, Mr. Willett, and myself resolved to verify the association of articles of man’s handiwork along with the extinct mammalia, by cleaning out the cave, which was courteously placed at our disposal by the owner, Mr. Hodgekinson.

Our first task was to clear the contents out of the portion of the cave nearest the mouth, or the antrum ([Fig. 83], A), and as we excavated onwards many traces of the presence of man were met with. A wide area on the left-hand side (b), where the roof and floor of the cave gradually met together, furnished innumerable fragments of charcoal, and many flint implements associated with the remains of the horse, rhinoceros, and hyæna. One fragment of bone in particular, belonging to the rhinoceros, had been calcined, and its carbonized condition bore unmistakeable testimony that it had been burnt while the animal juices were present. There were many other bones also burnt, which indicated the place where fires had been kindled, and food cooked. As we dug our way forward we met with a third area (c), that furnished flint and chert implements under the same conditions of deposit as that which tempted us to carry on our excavations. Its relation to the old floors of hyæna-occupation is shown by the dark lines over the area c in [Fig. 88]. At last the large open chamber (A) was cleared; it measured about thirty feet wide by six feet high, and it extended forty feet inwards. On the left there was a small upward-turning passage, very nearly blocked up with a mass of stalagmite; at the farther end a vertical fissure extended upwards (F), to the surface. This fissure has subsequently been proved to extend downwards to the right, and will doubtless furnish large quantities of animal remains to future explorers.