Caves and Swallets - Gower - page 280

become more thorough and he was able to place the 'Red Lady' in its proper context as a rare example of
'stone-age' burial near the end of a long sequence of Upper Palaeolithic occupation of the caves.
Breuil was a notable authority on prehistoric cave paintings. Shortly after being ordained an abbé in
1897 he developed a strong interest in Palaeolithic art, and he devoted much of his life to studying the
subject. He was the first to study the Lascaux cave in Southern France, which contains one of the most
outstanding displays of prehistoric art yet discovered. The re-excavation of Goat's Hole was largely re-
sponsible for a controversy about some red streaks which were noticed the same year by Professor Solas
and the Abbé Breuil on the wall of Bacon Hole (Fig. 159). In a recess at the back of the cave they dis-
covered ten wide red bands, which were almost horizontal and roughly parallel. Given his interest, Breuil
naturally claimed that they were cave paintings, similar to those found in the Dordogne. An iron screen
and gate were therefore erected to protect them. Some years later this theory was discredited as it became
apparent that the markings were slowly changing shape and were therefore natural, being caused by min-
erals seeping from the rock, but sections of the iron screen remain as a reminder of the hopes of a Gower
Lascaux. Bacon Hole is so named because the red oxide streaks on its walls were thought to make it look
like a slice of bacon.
A re-examination of Culver Hole, Llangennith, and of Spritsail Tor Cave by T. K. Penniman and oth-
ers in 1931 led to the recognition that caves had been used as burial places in the later prehistoric period.
At the same time a re-excavation of Port-Eynon Point Cave in 1931 and 1932 by the Reverend H. Arnold
andhissonproducedaconsiderablequantityofanimalremains,whichtheyforwardedtotheNaturalHis-
tory Museum in London (Table 14). One of the features of this second excavation was that the Arnolds
were extremely thorough and they preserved every fragment of organic matter, including minute bones
and teeth. The result is a much better picture of the fauna; too often the excavators of the Gower caves
were only interested in the larger and more spectacular animal bones.
FIG 159. Bacon Hole, with Pwlldu Head in the background. (Harold Grenfell)
TABLE 14. Animal remains from Port-Eynon Point Cave. (Adapted from various sources)