Thor's Cave
| Thor's Cave | |
| Staffordshire | |
|---|---|
 Thor's Cave from the Manifold Way | |
| SK09865496 | |
| Co-ordinates: | 53°5’30"N, 1°51’15"W |
| Length: | 150 feet |
| Geology: | Limestone |
Thor's Cave (also known as Thor's House Cavern and Thyrsis's Cave) is a natural cavern located in the Manifold Valley of Staffordshire, within the White Peak of the Staffordshire Moorlands.
The cave is classified as a Karst cave. Located in a steep limestone crag, the cave entrance, a symmetrical arch 25 feet wide and 30 feet high, is prominently visible from the valley bottom, around 260 feet below.
Thor's Cave is reached by an easy stepped path from the Manifold Way, and the cave has become a popular tourist spot, with views over the Manifold Valley. The second entrance is known as the "West Window", below which is a second cave, Thor's Fissure Cavern.[1]
Thor's Cave was served by a railway station on the Leek and Manifold Valley Light Railway from 1904 to 1934; the disused line now forms the Manifold Way.
Name
The origin of the name is uncertain, possibly from the word "tor", for a craggy hill or rocky outcrop. Links with the Norse god Thor have been suggested but evidence is lacking.
Human habitation
Excavations in 1864–65 and 1927–35 found human and animal remains, stone tools, pottery, amber beads, and bronze items within Thor's Cave and the adjacent Thor's Fissure Cavern. The caves are estimated to have contained the burial sites of at least seven people.[2] The finds suggest the cavern was occupied from the end of the Palaeolithic period, with more intensive use during the Iron Age and Roman periods.
Rock climbing
Thor's Cave has been used by rock climbers since explorations in the early 1950s by Joe Brown and others. Eleven limestone routes are listed by the BMC, ranging in grade from Very Severe to E7, and several more have been claimed since guidebook publication; a few routes are bolted.[3]
In popular culture
The cave was a filming location for The Lair of the White Worm, the 1988 film, directed by Ken Russell based on Bram Stoker's novel.
The cave was used in the filming of The Verve's 1993 video for their single "Blue", and is also pictured on the front cover of the band's first album, A Storm in Heaven.
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Thor's Cave) |
- "Rockfax: Thor's cave" (climbing guide)
- "Vintage footage of Thor's cave filmed from the now defunct Leek and Manifold Light Railway"
References
- ↑ Barker, Iain; Beck, John S (2010). Caves of the Peak District (7th ed.). Derbyshire Caving Association. ISBN 978-0-9563473-2-9.
- ↑ Chamberlain, Andrew T; Williams, Jim P (June 2001). A Gazetteer of English Caves, Fissures, and Rock Shelters Containing Human Remains. Dept. of Archaeology and Prehistory, University of Sheffield. Archived from the original on 27 December 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121227144823/http://capra.group.shef.ac.uk/1/nmid.html. Retrieved 6 April 2016.
- ↑ Browell, M (1987). Peak Limestone – South. British Mountaineering Council. ISBN 0-903908-26-3.