Royston Cave is one of the most interesting places to visit, the first reason to which is that nobody still knows how it actually appeared. It is a unique place that represents many medieval carvings on the walls whose origins remain unknown to this day. Let's learn something about this mysterious place, shall we?
LOCATION AND DISCOVERY
The cave is located in a town of Royston, the county of Hertfordshire in England. The shape of it is circular and it is 8 meters high. Even though it's totally unknown when Royston Cave was built and by whom, luckily the date of its discovery is well documented. One day in 1742 some workmen were going to put a bench in the market for traders, when they discovered a millstone in the ground and started to dig down.
After discovering the cave, it was thought there was a lot of treasure to see, but it turned out there were only bones, a skull and some vessels.
In 1790, the entrance tunnel was added, which is still present, to allow a much easier access to the cave.
WHAT'S INSIDE?
There's no doubt that the most notable thing about the cave is the carvings depicted on the walls. The main theme of the carvings is Christian and there can be seen many saints represented in medieval style.
Fortunately, it was possible to understand what saints had been carved on the walls of the Royston Cave. It is believed to represent such saints as St Katherine; St Christopher, patron saint of travellers; St George, a military saint, who holds a sword, and St Laurence.
There are also 13 figures. One of them is said to be Jesus Christ. His death and resurrection can be seen there as well.
Apart from Christian characters, there are others: a figure which is believed to be the one of King Richard I (the Lionheart) and another one is thought to be King David of the Psalms, including the figures of a horse and an Earth Goddess, a pagan symbol.
The cave has many other symbols and figures that haven't been identified to this day!
WHO BUILT IT | THEORIES
Royston Cave is surrounded by mysteries as its origin and purpose for the construction have never been discovered. However, many theories of how the cave was used and built have been suggested.
And one of the popular theories is that Royston Cave was used by the Knights Templar as their secret place of worship. Very similar carvings have been found in other places of Templar worship across Europe.
Who were the Knights Templar?
The Knights Templar are said to appear in 1119 as a religious and military group that was to protect pilgrims while their trips to the Holy Land. The knights very often took part in the Crusades as well and soon became quite wealthy and influential across almost all Europe. But in 1307, Pope Clement V and King Phillip IV of France (who were in debt with the knights) declared the Knights Templar heretics and began to be imprisoned till their total disappearance.
There are many people who keep on insisting on the theory that Royston Cave was used by King James I to practice Freemasonry, while others claim it used to be a private chapel of Lade Roisia (after whom the cave was named). She was the wife of William the Conqueror's steward. The couple owned a lot of land and the area of the cave was at their disposal too.
Royston Cave has so many theories but none of them has proved to be the 100% true one. Write in the comments your opinion on how Royston Cave was used and why it was built! Would you like to visit this place one day?
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