Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
[There is a] hole at the Poynt of Worme heade, but few dare enter it, and Men fable there that a
Dore within the spatius Hole hathe be sene with great Nayles on it; but that that is spoken of Waters
there rennynge undar the Ground is more lykely.
John Leyland
G
OWER IS ONE OF
the main cave areas in Britain and the 'holes', as the Gower caves are traditionally
called, have been well known for centuries. Leyland, the antiquary appointed by Henry VIII to record his
kingdom, had not only heard of the hole at Worms Head, but also records a tradition that an underground
passagelinkedWormsHeadwithacaveattheheadoftheGwendraethFachinCarmarthenshire(Fig.155).
Unfortunately for Leyland the cave systems are not as extensive as that or even as large as those in the
Peak District or the Mendips. There are a surprising number of caves, however, and many of these are of
international importance. The majority are located in the limestone cliffs on the south coast, the key areas
beingthestretchfromRhossilitoPort-EynonPoint,thatfromThreeCliffBaytoPwllduHeadandthecoast
aroundCaswellBay.Therearealsoanumberofcavesalongthecliffsandrelictcliffsonthenorthcoastand
a number inland, the most well knownand accessible ofwhich is probably Cathole in Green Cwm. It is the
most important of the inland caves because of its Pleistocene fossils and human remains from the Bronze
Age. The finest cave in Gower, however, is undoubtedly Llethrid Swallet, which lies a short distance to the
northofCathole. Itincludes achamber 40metres long,30metres wideandupto10metres high,knownas
'The Great Hall'. The roof of the chamber is well decorated with stalactites, including one known as 'The
Curtain' because of its extended shape (Fig. 156).
