The Shell Grotto

I don’t know about anyone else but I often leave projects half done. It’s a problem. I’ll go all out in the first moments with every expectation that it will turn out beautifully and then I tire of it and move on to the next project.

I feel like that’s what happened with the Shell Grotto.

They call it a Grotto, I suspect, only because they don’t know what else to call it. It’s a small cave with a few tunnels and rooms which are intricately decorated with shells, fashioned after flowers and leaves. There is also one room that isn’t as highly decorated and in fact is is half blank, as though it were finished in haste or deliberately left. There’s also a skylight in one of the rooms that looks deliberate, though whether or not it is I couldn’t say.

Is it a house? An ancient Roman temple? A meeting place for a secret sect to perform seances? Everyone who visits has their own theory, but the truth is that nobody knows. It was found in 1835 when a little boy fell through it’s roof during construction, although there are many other versions of how the grotto was discovered. No one’s quite sure how that happened either.

What everyone is sure of is that the Shell Grotto is quite the puzzle. The once colourful shells were gathered from various beaches in Kent, likely from as far north as the Isle of Sheppe and as far south west as Southampton. The Shell Grotto itself is in Margate, so if you’re at all familiar with the area you know that’s quite the walk. If not, have a look at a map, you’ll see what I mean. To go all the way to Southampton for a particular type of shell, or to wait years and years until you found the ones you needed, that takes a certain amount of determination!

Can you have a good time in there? Absolutely. It’s really fun to speculate on who built it and why, I suspect a more modern hand. Can you be there for a long time? No. The cave is small, and I suspect that even before Covid they only allowed a certain number of people in at a time. We happened to go on a day that wasn’t too busy. There’s also a small entry fee which I consider well worth it as the money helps to conserve the Shell Grotto and keep it open to the public.

I recommend going to the grotto if you’re already planning on visiting Margate or the surrounding costal towns. You can spend a solid twenty minutes to half an hour looking around the cave and the small museum just before it, and then spend the rest of your day by the sea. If you’re looking for a good place to stop for food I recommend either the Old Kent Market which is right by the shore and which also has several local craft shops within it, or the Old Town T Stall just down Market Street. There are all sorts of other shops along Market Street including a very cute book store just across the Old Town T Stall.

Don’t forget to check out the beach and have a walk along the pier, but bring a jacket as the wind can get quite nippy, and of course, sunscreen!