Beneath the northern part of the castle lies Wogan Cavern, a vast cave that is accessed from above down a spiral staircase. Wogan Cavern is today home to Greater Horseshoe bats, but its large size and flat floor make it a very useful space, and we know that many people in the past used it. During the Middle Ages it probably served as a store, while artefacts found in the cave show its use during the Roman period, as well as much earlier in prehistoric times.
Recent archaeological excavations have revealed just how long people have been using Wogan Cavern, and have shown it to be a nationally important archaeological site in its own right. We now know that Mesolithic hunter-gatherers inhabited the cave around 11,000 years ago. In addition, the cave has yielded rare evidence for even earlier hunter-gatherers, who occupied the site during the last Ice Age. Bones of mammoth and reindeer have been found alongside stone tools left behind by some of the earliest Homo sapiens ever to occupy Britain.
The excavations in the cave are ongoing.
There is a dedicated website which hosts all of the most up to date information on the archaeological work being done by Dr Rob Dinnis and his team. Just follow Home (wogancavern.org)
Follow this link to watch a short BBC video about last summer's dig. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-62065475
