Writing on the wall inside caves of fear
WARDING OFF EVIL: THEY PROVIDED shelter from the elements as far back as Neanderthal times, but even relatively modern humans used them to record their fears about the supernatural, it has emerged.
In the limestone caves at Creswell Crags, on the border between Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire, explorers have uncovered what they believe to be the UK’s largest collection of “witches’ marks” carved in the rock to ward off evil spirits rising from the underworld.
The discovery was made by caving enthusiasts Hayley Clark and Ed Waters, who noticed them on the walls. They had previously thought to have been graffiti from a time before the caves were shut off.
The site, to which people retreated during a crucial period of human evolution between 130,000 and 10,000 years ago, has been a rich source of archaeological discovery and contains Britain’s earliest cave art, with 13,000-year-old pictures of birds, deer, bison and horses.
Duncan Wilson, chief executive of Heritage England, said: “Even 200 years ago, the English countryside was a very different place. Death and disease were everyday companions and evil forces could readily be imagined in the dark.
“We can only speculate on what it was the people of Creswell feared might emerge from the underworld into these caves.”