Cattedown is an inner city

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

, Devon. Its position beside the River Plym estuary just short of the mouth led to its early settlement. Catherine of Aragon - the first wife of Henry VIII - travelled from Loredo in Spain to a harbour in Plymouth, England to be married. She arrived in Plymouth on 2nd October 1501 where, 'she could not have been received with greater rejoicings'. The area that she disembarked or 'set down' was named in her honour as Cattedown. In 1886, two

archaeologists Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

discovered human bones while mining in a quarry. They included the remains of many strange creatures – hyenas, bison, woolly rhinoceros and cave lions. Among the partial skeletons of 15 early humans was the famous ‘Cattedown Man’ – believed to be the city’s earliest known inhabitant and dating back 140,000 years. Archaeologists say he could potentially be the oldest human found in Britain. - Today, the caves – listed as a national monument by Historic England – remain fenced off and kept out of sight. Plans to turn the area into a tourist and visitor attraction have not yet progressed; more than a decade after they were first mooted.

References

Suburbs of Plymouth, Devon {{Devon-geo-stub