Case file · Folklore / legend
The Witch of Wookey Hole
In the first chamber of Wookey Hole Caves in Somerset stands a roughly human-shaped stalagmite said to be a witch turned to stone by a monk from Glastonbury.
1912 CE · 51.23, -2.67 · status: legend
The account
Herbert Balch excavated the cave from 1904 to 1928, including the 'Witch's Kitchen' chamber, and found traces of human use going back to the Iron Age and earlier. Finds from the cave were popularly linked to the witch. It opened as a show cave in 1927.
The sceptical view
The 'witch' is a natural limestone formation; the legend explains its shape.