Wurt Pit and Devil's Punchbowl, Geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Somerset, England.
Wurt Pit and Devil's Punchbowl are two bowl-shaped depressions in the Mendip Hills formed by ground subsidence over time. They display different layers of limestone and rock that tell a geological story of the region's formation.
These two depressions formed through natural subsidence processes in a limestone area over geological time. They became a protected site in 1987 because they help scientists understand how the landscape developed.
Scientists and researchers regularly study the marls at Devil's Punchbowl and the Harptree Beds at Wurt Pit to understand regional geological processes.
The site is located between East Harptree and Priddy Circles and is free to visit year-round. You can reach it via Old Bristol Road without needing to pay any entrance fee.
The rock layers contain rare minerals such as limonite, barite, and sphalerite that reflect an ancient mining period. These mineral deposits make the site particularly interesting for those studying ore formation.
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