Sun Hole
Also known as Sheep Hole
Excavation
E.K. Tratman, 1926-28; A.G. Davies et al., 1951-53; J.B. Campbell, 1968; S.N. Colcutt, 1977-80.
Curation
UBSS Museum.
Burials
MNI: 4+ (2 adults, 2 juveniles).
Finds
Neolithic and Early Bronze Age pottery; pottery spoon; Neolithic and Bronze Age flints; polished flint axe; Romano-British artefacts; bone points, animal bones.
Dates
| Period | Reliability |
|---|---|
| Early Bronze Age | Stratigraphical context of human remains indeterminate |
| Neolithic | Stratigraphical context of human remains indeterminate |
| Upper Palaeolithic | 14C date obtained directly on human remains |
14C
12,620 bp (OxA-19557) on human bone; 12,545 bp (OxA-14438), 12,610 bp (OxA-14476), 12,540 bp (OxA-14477), 12,490 bp (OxA-18705) on animal bone.
Additional Notes
Palaeolithic and Neolithic or Early Bronze Age
External References
| Site of Special Scientific Interest | 566 |
| Mendip Cave Registry and Archive | 764 |
| National Monuments Record | ST 45 SE 11 |
| Sites and Monument Record | S 10396 |
| Scheduled Ancient Monuments | 13205 |
Bibliography
Barker, H. et al. (1971) British Museum natural radiocarbon measurements VII. Radiocarbon 13: 157-188.
Bramwell, D. (1957) Report on the bird bones from the Pleistocene levels, Sun Hole, Cheddar. Proceedings of the University of Bristol Spelaeological Society 8 (1): 39.
Branigan, K. & Dearne, M.J. (1991) A Gazetteer of Romano-British Cave Sites and their Finds. Department of Archaeology and Prehistory, University of Sheffield.
Branigan, K. & Dearne, M.J. (1991) Romano-British usage of the caves of Cheddar Gorge. Proceedings of the University of Bristol Spelaeological Society 19 (1): 19-31.
Burleigh, R. (1986) Radiocarbon dates for human and animal bones from Mendip caves. Proceedings of the University of Bristol Spelaeological Society 17 (3): 267-274.
Campbell, J.B. (1970) The Upper Palaeolithic Period. In Campbell, J. et al. (eds) The Mendip Hills in Prehistoric and Roman Times. Bristol, pp. 5-11.
Campbell, J.B. (1977) The Upper Palaeolithic of Britain. Oxford. Clarendon Press. 2 vols.
Colcutt, S.N., Currant, A.P. & Hawkes, C.J. (1981) A further report on the excavations at Sun Hole, Cheddar. Proceedings of the University of Bristol Spelaeological Society 16 (1): 21-38.
Davis, A.G. (1955) Report on the molluscs from Sun Hole Cave, Cheddar. Proceedings of the University of Bristol Spelaeological Society 7 (2): 71-72.
Gowlett, J.A.J. et al. (1986) Radiocarbon dates from the Oxford AMS system: Archaeometry Datelist 3. Archaeometry 28: 116-125.
Green, H.S. (1980) The Flint Arrowheads of the British Isles. B.A.R. British Series 75. B.A.R., Oxford.
Jackson, J.W. (1955) The Pleistocene vertebrate fauna of Sun Hole, Cheddar. Proceedings of the University of Bristol Spelaeological Society 7 (2): 73-75.
Jacobi, R. & Higham, T. (2011). The Late Upper Palaeolithic recolonisation of Britain: new results from radiocarbon dating. In Ashton, N., Lewis, S.G. & Stringer, C. (eds) The Ancient Human Occupation of Britain. Elsevier. 223-247.
Oakley, K.P. (1980) Relative dating of the fossil hominids of Europe. Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History). Geology Series 34: 1-63.
Parfitt, S.A. & Preece, R.C. (2022) New palaeontological evidence suggests an early Middle Pleistocene age for the lower levels of Sun Hole Cave, Cheddar, Somerset, UK. Proceedings of the Geologists’ Association 133: 162-175.
Piggott, S. (1936) A pottery spoon from the Mendips. Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 2: 143.
Reade, H. et al (2020) Late glacial palaeoclimate investigations at King Arthur’s Cave and Sun Hole Cave. <Proceedings of the University of Bristol Speleological Society 28 2: 221-238.
Richards, M.P., Hedges, R.E.M. et al. (2000) Gough’s Cave and Sun Hole Cave stable isotope values indicate a high animal protein diet in the British Upper Palaeolithic. Journal of Archaeological Science 27: 1-3.
Stevens, R.E., Jacobi, R.M. & Higham, T.F.G. (2010) Reassessing the diet of Upper Palaeolithic humans from Gough’s Cave and Sun Hole, Cheddar Gorge, Somerset, UK. Journal of Archaeological Science. 37: 52–56.
Tratman, E.K. (1955) Second report on the excavations at Sun Hole, Cheddar. The Pleistocene levels. Proceedings of the University of Bristol Spelaeological Society 7 (2): 61-72.
Tratman, E.K. & Henderson, G.T.D. (1927) First report on the excavations at Sun Hole, Cheddar. Levels above the Pleistocene. Proceedings of the University of Bristol Spelaeological Society 3 (2): 84-97.
Article Author Graham Mullan