Gough's Cave, Cheddar, Somerset: Quaternary Stratigraphy (UBSS Proceedings v.24(1))

Abstract: The Quaternary stratigraphy of Gough's Cave is reviewed and summarised. The earliest deposits known are the Main Sands (new name) probably deposited when the cave was the main resurgence for the karst drainage of the area. The Conglomerate marked a departure from the normal pattern of sedimentation, being probably deposited by a stream entering the cave from Cheddar Gorge. The succeeding Creswellian Cave Earth was deposited by intermittent floods and yielded the flint industry which gives it its name. This occupation lasted for around 1500 years. The Creswellian Cave Earth is capped by the stalagmite which marks a period of seasonal flooding which left a sequence of alternations of clayey sediment and carbonate. The youngest deposit was the Upper Cave Earth (new name) which marks a return to brief floods. Eventually deposition ceased in the outer part of the cave. Early Iron Age and Romano-British finds from the Upper Cave Earth probably resulted from later contamination or human or animal disturbance.