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UID:pretalx-nss-convention-2026-UBNCKV@talks.caving.dev
DTSTART;TZID=EST:20260709T142500
DTEND;TZID=EST:20260709T144500
DESCRIPTION:Bluff Cave is a small cave opening off a large sinkhole in Mamm
 oth Cave National Park. In the early 1970s\, Patty Jo Watson and colleague
 s found evidence for Pre-Columbian Indian use of the cave in the form of "
 [gypsum] mining and smoke blackening on the walls plus a fairly thick scat
 tering of torch debris." Despite collecting torch remains for radiocarbon 
 dating\, a successful assay was not made or published. Lacking solid chron
 ology\, the cave has not been included in subsequent scholarly discussions
  of Early Woodland Period gypsum mining.\n\nWhile recording historic graff
 iti in the cave in November 2017\, the authors noted the torch debris and 
 photographed the extensive wall mining. In November 2025\, as part of larg
 er cave chronology project in the National Park\, we made additional obser
 vations and photographs\, and collected two samples of torch material from
  the floor of the main mining chamber for AMS radiocarbon dating. Sample #
 1 was false foxglove (Agalinis sp.) while Sample #2 was river cane (Arundi
 naria sp.). The laboratory results (Beta-790093 2730+/- 30 BP\; Beta-79009
 4 2810 +/- 30 BP) place the activity at Bluff Cave solidly in the Early Wo
 odland Period\, contemporaneous with other gypsum mined caves in central K
 entucky such as Salts Cave\, Mammoth Cave\, 15Ed23\, and 15Al22.\n\nBased 
 on the amount of floor disturbance\, torch debris\, and the polished rock 
 surfaces at the crawl into the largest chamber\, the latter two of which i
 ndicate heavy visitation\, it is likely that Bluff Cave was visited for ot
 her purposes besides gypsum mining.
DTSTAMP:20260826T232337Z
LOCATION:102
SUMMARY:Early Woodland Gypsum Mining at Bluff Cave\, Mammoth Cave National 
 Park\, Kentucky - 
URL:https://talks.caving.dev/nss-convention-2026/talk/UBNCKV/
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