Hyaena Cave

Hyaena Cave
Map showing the location of Hyaena Cave
Map showing the location of Hyaena Cave
Map showing location in Gibraltar.
Coordinates36°07′18″N 5°20′31″W / 36.121623°N 5.341946°W / 36.121623; -5.341946

Hyaena Cave is a cave in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar. It forms part of the Gorham's Cave complex which has been nominated for UNESCO World Heritage Site status.[1] The cave was listed as a Palaeontological site and it was protected by law in 2018.

Description

Hyaena Cave is one of four caves which together make up the Gorham's Cave complex which has been nominated to become a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the others being Vanguard, Gorham's and Bennett's Cave.[2] Hyaena Cave, like the other three in the complex, has been gradually filled with sand that has been blown in through the entrance over thousands of years. These sands remain where they fall and over time they build up to remarkable depths. In the case of Vanguard Cave and Gorham's Cave the deposits are both more than seventeen metres deep. The sands record the environment from 15,000 to 55,000 years ago when the coastline was very different. In the past the sea was over 4.5 kilometres (2.8 miles) away from the caves whereas it is now very close.[3]

Today

In 2018 Hyaena cave was included in the caves listed in the Heritage and Antiquities Act by the Government of Gibraltar, noting it was a Palaeontological site.[4]

References

  1. ^ "Revealed: Britain's best historical treasures". MSN Travel. Archived from the original on 4 May 2013. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
  2. ^ "UK Tentative List of Potential Sites for World Heritage Nomination: Application form" (PDF). UK Government. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
  3. ^ Goreham's Cave complex, UNESCO tentative list, retrieved 4 August 2014
  4. ^ "Heritage and Antiquities Act 2018" (PDF). Gibraltar Gov Records. 2018 – via Government of Gibraltar.


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