An international team, led by an archaeologist from the University of Southampton and the University of Bordeaux, has revealed the first example of Palaeolithic figurative cave art found in the Balkan Peninsula. Dr Aitor Ruiz-Redondo ...

Alan Jeffreys enjoys a caving classic even if he doesn't entirely approve of the author's somewhat cavalier attitude to risk ... Ernest Baker was well known in his day as an indefatigable climber, rambler and ...

Kate Mosse is better known for Labyrinth and other books, but Alan Jeffreys recommends taking a look at her novella, The Cave, set in the Pyrenees Quick Reads, as outlined on the publisher’s promotional blurb, ...

A large concentration of ritual protection marks have been discovered in caves in Creswell Crags, a limestone gorge on the Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire border. Darkness Below editor Linda Wilson visited the site with researcher and archaeologist Alison ...

It’s birthday cake plus cheese and pineapple on sticks all round this issue as Descent 266 celebrates 50 years in print. And it’s a visually stunning issue to mark the special anniversary. Caving hut clubs ...

BCA Newsletter no 37 for January 2019 is now available. Editor David Rose has produced a bumper issue starting with a few words from him as well as from BCA chair, Les Williams, who recently ...

In his quest for vintage caving books, Alan Jeffreys has delved into his bookshelves again, and has come up with a northern classic from the early 1960s ... Following the publication of‘Underground Adventure in 1952 ...

Alan Jeffreys continues his look at classic caving books with a review of a classic text that captures the excitement of underground exploration in the 1930s and 1940s as war raged and some of those involved were fighting ...

As part of our ongoing series of reviews of classic caving books, Alan Jeffreys looks at the groundbreaking Pennine Underground. With the plethora of UK caving guides at present available, it is easy to see ...

The December 2018 issue of Caves and Karst Science is now available. Volume 45, Number 3 carries six articles. The first is a report on the distribution of deposits of cool freshwater tufa, which are ...

Mike Moore reviews a valuable addition to any mine explorer's book collection. This new book is a detailed study of  the lead, silver and zinc mines of the Cwm Rheidol and Ystumtuen orefield, covering the ...

If it looks like you’ll be restricted to armchair caving over the festive season, make sure you get the latest copy of Descent to keep you in touch with the underground world. And congratulations are ...