Poole's Cavern Hobbes and Cotton again followed in the footsteps of Mary, Queen of Scots when they explored Poole’s Cavern, or Poole’s Hole. This natural cave is apparently named after a 15th-century Robin Hood-like character who hid out there. One of the sources of the River Wye rises in the cavern and the action of water over thousands of years has worn the limestone walls into strange shapes. Half a mile inside the hill is Mary Queen of Scots’ Pillar, a stalactite against which she is said to have leaned for support. Other beautiful stalactitic formations have appropriate names such as The Beehive, The Lion, Poole’s Saddle, The Woolsack and The Flitch of Bacon. The cavern has been open to visitors for almost 200 years. More recently, extensive archaeological excavation has revealed the importance of the cave as a centre for Romano-British bronze smithing and as a shrine to the Roman Goddess of Buxton, Arnemetia. Buxton Museum has a wide variety of material showing occupation of Poole’s Cavern from prehistoric times. More Pictures Wonders of the Peak Caverns