A sandstone cave in Derbyshire once thought to 18th century follies are actually the remains of a near complete 9th century Anglo-Saxon house, a study revealed.
New analysis of the caves cut out of the soft sandstone was carried out by Wessex Archaeology and the Royal Agricultural University in Cirencester, Gloucestershire.
They discovered it is actually an Anglo-Saxon dwelling and oratory that may have once been home to King Eardwulf, who became Saint Hardulph after his death.
Archaeologists undertook a detailed survey of the grade II listed Anchor Church Caves between Foremark and Ingleby in South Derbyshire.
They found that rather than being a folly, a building construction purely for decorative purposes, it was home to the oldest intact domestic interior in the UK .