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Information About

Burrington Combe




  name Burrington Combe
  aos Avon
  interest Biological and Geological
  notifydate 1952
  map ''English Nature''


Burrington Combe () is a Carboniferous Limestone Gorge near the village of Burrington , on the north side of the Mendip Hills , in North Somerset , England . "Combe" or "coombe" is a word of Celtic origin found in several forms on all of the British Isles, denoting a steep-sided valley or hollow.

Augustus Montague Toplady was inspired to write the hymn ''Rock Of Ages'' while sheltering under a rock in the combe during a Thunderstorm in the late 18th Century . The rock was subsequently named after the hymn.


CAVES

The combe contains the entrances to many of the Caves Of The Mendip Hills , including Aveline's Hole , Sidcot Swallet and Goatchurch Cavern .


ARCHAEOLOGY

Archaeological discoveries of early Cemeteries demonstrate human occupation of the combe and its caves from the Bronze Age with some evidence of occupation during the Upper Palaeolithic period.1


SPECIAL SCIENTIFIC INTEREST

In recognition of its biological and geological interest, an area of within and around the combe was Notified as a Site Of Special Scientific Interest in 1952.


REFERENCES