More information : SE 89748329 Alfred's Cave (NR) (1)
A small cave or rock shelter with an opening, 11 ft wide, narrowing to acute-angled cleft some 14 ft from the entrance. Excavation by Lamplough and Lidster about 1951 revealed three levels of occupation.
Level 1 (Upper Level). Pottery ranging from Roman (including Crambeck ware) to the 16th century was seen.
Level 2. Flint scrapers and Bronze Age type pottery lying on a
layer of black earth.
Level 3. Remains of at least five Neolithic burials resting on the
cave floor were seen. scraps of deer antlers, Neolithic 'A' pottery
sherds and hearths together with a few flint implements, including two which were well within the Mesolithic tradition, were also
found. (2)
There is nothing at SE 89748329 which falls in a pasture field.
Alfred's Cave is situated at SE 8982 8328 (25.0 m due S of a cairn erected at SE 8983 8331 to commemorate the event of Alfred using the cave in 705 AD) although it is now no more than a cleft in the rock with a boulder at the entrance.
Surveyed at 1:2500. (See GP) (3)
A total of 14 worked flints from Alfred's Cave listed as Mesolithic
by Wymer. Now in Scarborough Museum. (4)
The site was assessed for scheduling as part of the Monuments Protection Programme in 2001, but it was thought that the excavations had completely removed the the archaeological deposits within and immediately outside the entrance to the cave and it was therefore not recommended for scheduling. However, it is possible that the cave was originally more extensive and that further archaeological deposits have been burried beneath fallen rock. Although the present management of the site will ensure it's protection, steps should be taken to assess its potential more fully in the event of any future threat. (10) |