Chilmark Quarries () is a 9.65

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), that is, square metres (), and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. ...

biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), in the ravine south of the village of Chilmark in

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

, England. The SSSI was first notified in 1977. Its importance as a home for bats led to the site being designated in 2005 (together with Fonthill Grottoes) as a European

Special Area of Conservation A special area of conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...

. The western section of the site is in Chilmark civil parish, while the eastern section (separated by a minor road) is in Teffont parish.

History

Chilmark stone, a form of

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

, was mined here from medieval times and was used for buildings including

Salisbury Cathedral Salisbury Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an Church of England, Anglican cathedral in the city of Salisbury, England. The cathedral is regarded as one of the leading examples of Early English architecture, ...

. In 1936 the quarry and mines were bought by the

Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force and civil aviation that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the ...

and used as a storage area for RAF Chilmark, a munitions depot, until 1995. Stone extraction continued on a small scale until the quarry closed c. 2007. In March 2019 the quarry re-opened (by Chilmark Stone (Properties) Ltd) and extraction of Ashlar and Walling stone has once again started.

Biological interest

Within the disused quarries on the western side of the valley, there is a system of caves in which up to 150

bat Bats are flying mammals of the order Chiroptera (). With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most birds, flying with their very long spread-out ...

s, of several species, roost in winter. Species which use the site include greater and lesser horseshoe bats, Daubenton's bat,

Natterer's bat Natterer's bat (''Myotis nattereri'') is a European Vespertilionidae, vespertilionid bat with pale wings. It has brown fur tending to greyish-white on its underside. It is found across most of the continent of Europe, parts of the Near East and No ...

and Brandt's bat. The quarries have been suggested to be the largest British hibernation roost of the Bechstein's bat, but it remains uncertain whether Bechstein's bats hibernate in caves and mines.

Geological interest

The quarry has exposures of

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately 143.1 Mya. ...

rocks, part of the Purbeckian beds. It is a fine building stone used for the main structure of

and many other local buildings. Purbeckian limestones, possibly from Chilmark, were used for packing around at least one of the upright stones of

Stonehenge Stonehenge is a prehistoric Megalith, megalithic structure on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, to ...

, for houses on an

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

site at Fifield Bavant, and for Rockbourne Roman Villa and other Roman sites. Chilmark stone is easy to work, but long-lived in use. Fossils are uncommon in the beds recently being extracted, but include

ammonite Ammonoids are extinct, (typically) coiled-shelled cephalopods comprising the subclass Ammonoidea. They are more closely related to living octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish (which comprise the clade Coleoidea) than they are to nautiluses (family N ...

s and other shells.

References

External links

Chilmark Stone (Properties) Ltd

Natural England website
(SSSI information)
SAC boundaries at MAgiC

Aerial photo of the site at Multimap.com

Joint Nature Conservation Committee for Chilmark quarries

{{SSSIs Wilts geological Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Wiltshire Sites of Special Scientific Interest notified in 1977 Special Areas of Conservation in England Quarries in Wiltshire