Joint Mitnor Cave

Coordinates: 50°29′03″N 3°46′21″W / 50.484170°N 3.772634°W / 50.484170; -3.772634
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Joint Mitnor Cave
Bone Cave
Entrance to the cave
Map showing the location of Joint Mitnor Cave
Map showing the location of Joint Mitnor Cave
Location in Devon
LocationHigher Kiln Quarry, Buckfastleigh
OS gridSX 7434 6644
Coordinates50°29′03″N 3°46′21″W / 50.484170°N 3.772634°W / 50.484170; -3.772634
GeologyLimestone
AccessBy permission

Joint Mitnor Cave, also known as Bone Cave, is a limestone cave situated in the now disused Higher Kiln Quarry near Buckfastleigh, in Devon, England. The cave is one of a number at the quarry and in the surrounding area, and is managed by the Pengelly Trust.[1]

Palaeontology[edit]

Bone heap in the cave

The cave has been excavated and its animal remains examined on several occasions. The first period of excavation was in 1939–41, when over 4000 mammal bones were discovered deposited in the cave.[2]

In September 2015, thieves broke into the cave (despite its locked steel door) and stole a number of fossil bones which were on display in their original setting.[3] Reconstructions of the stolen fossils were later produced by 3D printing by academics and put on show in the cave in their place. The caves were later reopened by the great grandson of the original founder, Joshua Burroughs.[4][5][6]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Caves". William Pengelly Cave Studies Trust. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  2. ^ Sutcliffe, Anthony (1958). Joint Mitnor Cave, Buckfastleigh: A Report on Excavations Carried Out During 1939-41 by the Late AH Ogilvie. Torquay: Torquay Natural History Society.
  3. ^ "Thieves steal 100,000-year-old elephant tooth fossil". BBC News. 23 September 2015. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  4. ^ "The cave with 'new' 3D printed fossils". BBC News. 12 August 2017. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  5. ^ Kennedy, Maev (7 August 2017). "Making old bones: Joint Mitnor cave reopens with replica fossils". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
  6. ^ Katz, Brigit. "Once Plundered by Thieves, Ancient Cave Reopens with 3-D Replicas of Stolen Fossils". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 2 October 2020.