The Caynton Caves are a series of man-made underground chambers in the grounds of Caynton Hall, near Beckbury, Shropshire, England. Their original purpose and date of construction are disputed, though most authoritative sources date them to the 19th century.
You can check out all my photos from this explore here on my Flickr.
Background:
The caverns comprise an irregular series of neo-Romanesque ambulatories and chambers hollowed out of sandstone, with carved archways, pillars, symbols and niches, apparently for candles. They are located about 250 metres (820 ft) west of Caynton Hall, beneath privately-owned woodland, within a disused stone quarry. One suggestion is that they were the result of quarrying during the mid-19th century and were then turned by the landowners, the Legge family, into a grotto or underground folly.
There have been speculative claims that the caverns are older, perhaps dating back at least to the 17th century, and some press articles have associated them with the Knights Templar. However, historian and author Dan Jones considers that there is no evidence linking the caves to the Templars and Historic England dates the grotto as probably late 18th-century or early 19th-century.
The Caynton cave site is listed as a grotto, an artificial cave, on the Historic England site, which also dates it to the late 18th or early 19th century. It was apparently sealed off in 2012 when vandals were misusing the space and using it for black magic rituals.
The explore:
This is an absolutely amazing explore, perhaps one of the best that we've come across so far - if you get a chance to visit the area, this should most certainly be on your places to go. Having not quite mastered lowlight photography yet, I did my best with the dark conditions that I found myself in. The cave is filled with detailed pillars to support the roof and interesting carvings allover the walls. Perhaps one of the most interesting areas was the 'throne' seat that we found. In some places there are carvings that suggest a more sinister meaning and have heavy links to the devil, an unsettling thought when exploring this place! Entry was, surprisingly, very easy if you're looking in the right area - just be cautious of how close this is to neighbouring properties when visiting.
A throne fit for a king?:
Getting creative with lighting:
There are plenty of interesting carvings on the walls - does anyone know what this three circular symbol could be, I find nothing on Google?:
The attention to detail of each pillar in the cave is amazing:
You can check out all my photos from this explore here on my Flickr.
Background:
The caverns comprise an irregular series of neo-Romanesque ambulatories and chambers hollowed out of sandstone, with carved archways, pillars, symbols and niches, apparently for candles. They are located about 250 metres (820 ft) west of Caynton Hall, beneath privately-owned woodland, within a disused stone quarry. One suggestion is that they were the result of quarrying during the mid-19th century and were then turned by the landowners, the Legge family, into a grotto or underground folly.
There have been speculative claims that the caverns are older, perhaps dating back at least to the 17th century, and some press articles have associated them with the Knights Templar. However, historian and author Dan Jones considers that there is no evidence linking the caves to the Templars and Historic England dates the grotto as probably late 18th-century or early 19th-century.
The Caynton cave site is listed as a grotto, an artificial cave, on the Historic England site, which also dates it to the late 18th or early 19th century. It was apparently sealed off in 2012 when vandals were misusing the space and using it for black magic rituals.
The explore:
This is an absolutely amazing explore, perhaps one of the best that we've come across so far - if you get a chance to visit the area, this should most certainly be on your places to go. Having not quite mastered lowlight photography yet, I did my best with the dark conditions that I found myself in. The cave is filled with detailed pillars to support the roof and interesting carvings allover the walls. Perhaps one of the most interesting areas was the 'throne' seat that we found. In some places there are carvings that suggest a more sinister meaning and have heavy links to the devil, an unsettling thought when exploring this place! Entry was, surprisingly, very easy if you're looking in the right area - just be cautious of how close this is to neighbouring properties when visiting.
A throne fit for a king?:
Getting creative with lighting:
There are plenty of interesting carvings on the walls - does anyone know what this three circular symbol could be, I find nothing on Google?:
The attention to detail of each pillar in the cave is amazing:
