Iron Age caves reveal a nearly complete skeleton

Excavations at the Margate Caves, Kent, United Kingdom, revealed an Iron Age skeleton in a rare crouch burial.

Te Iron Age skeleton (by Dan Thompson)

The site is known from to have have been used since the Iron Age – the caves also housed facilities in modern times, including a 17th-century chalk mine. Recent excavations uncovered an Iron Age hill fort, a series of Iron Age ditches, some post holes and a large pit – where the crouch burial was found. It was discovered in the bottom of a bell-shaped chalk pit. The hill fort remains were found in the area of the proposed ticket office. The excavation is now complete.

The Margate Caves were discovered in 1798 by a gardener. The house owner, had the caves opened and employed a local artist to create carvings and paint scenes on the walls. The caves were opened in 1907 by a the vicar, who cleared and cut new shafts, eventually opening the caves to the public again after 1910. They were re-opened and closed a couple of times during the 20th century, and stood closed since 2004.

Excavations at the site (by Dan Thompson)

(after Dan Thompson & Kent Online)

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