In "The Origin of the Batcave" in Detective Comics #205 (March 1954), Batman tells Robin he had no idea the cave existed when he purchased the house they live in.

As time went on, Wayne found the place ideal to create a stronghold for his war against crime, and has incorporated a plethora of equipment as well as expanding the cave for specific uses.

[6] In the 1960s Batman TV show, the cave entrance is behind a bookcase which was opened when Bruce Wayne activated a control switch hidden in a bust of William Shakespeare.

In Batman Begins and The Dark Knight Rises, the cave is accessible through a secret door disguised as part of a large display case and is unlocked by pressing a sequence of keys on the nearby grand piano.

Essentially, anyone who is aware of Batman's secret identity also knows the location of the Batcave, much like how people who have knowledge of Robin's identity have knowledge of Batman's; these, unfortunately, include such villains as Ra's al Ghul, who makes occasional visits to the Batcave to confront his long-time nemesis, and David Cain, who infiltrated the cave during the Bruce Wayne: Fugitive comic book storyline when he framed Bruce Wayne for murder.

Freeze and Poison Ivy discovered the Batcave while fleeing through the sewers to escape the attacks of the surviving mobsters, but they had lost their way and were never able to find the cave again after being defeated, with Batman reflecting that he would seal that entrance to prevent such a thing happening again.

When the powerful Bedlam took over the world and transferred all adults to a duplicate Earth, Robin attempted to assess the situation from the Batcave with Superboy and Impulse, but it would appear that he avoided revealing the cave's exact location to them, suggesting that he accessed it via an external passage or a teleporter.

Additionally, the cave features state-of-the-art facilities such as a crime lab, various specialized laboratories, mechanized workshops, personal gymnasium, parking, docking and hangar space for his vehicles as well as separate exits for each type, memorabilia of past campaigns, a vast library, a large bat colony, and a Justice League teleporter.

During the later reconstruction, the new Wayne Manor incorporates additional safeguards against future quakes and even a potential nuclear catastrophe, outfitting the cave as a virtual bomb shelter or an enhanced panic room.

It also includes an "island" computer platform (built on the spot where the Batmobiles' hydraulic turntable once was) with seven linked Cray T932 mainframes and a state-of-the-art hologram projector.

The most regularly featured trophies are a full-size animatronic Tyrannosaurus Rex, a giant replica of a Lincoln penny, and an oversized Joker playing card.

One such Batcave was given to Batgirl, below a house owned by Bruce Wayne himself, during a point where her identity was compromised after she saved a man from rogue government agents, meaning that she could not walk around without a mask.

The first sequel, Bloodstorm, shows that a cellar beneath a brownstone owned by Alfred Pennyworth serves as a lair/laboratory for Batman after he has become a vampire himself, the Dark Knight 'sleeping' there in his coffin during the day.

Although Wayne Manor collapses into the remains of the cave, part of the tunnel system is still intact, with Batman establishing his lair there in the story's second sequel, Crimson Mist, after he surrenders to his new vampire instincts.

Despite the collapse of the manor, the cave interior appears mostly intact, with the giant penny, the T-Rex and the Batmobile shown to be undamaged, although there is also a deep chasm within walking distance of the areas where Batman kept the aforementioned items when he was human.

Eventually, this 'Brotherhood' is infiltrated by Tallant, the son of Bruce Wayne and Talia al Ghul, who is able to destroy the Brotherhood from within using his father's own costume, culminating in him defeating his grandfather in a duel in the cave.

[12] In the 31st century, the Batcave has been long abandoned, although Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl and Lightning Lad briefly infiltrate the cave while looking for evidence that Krypton existed to counter the xenophobic claims of the Justice League of Earth that Superman was a human given powers to fight against aliens.

[14] In the comic book continuation of the television series Smallville, Batman has a safe house in the form of a cargo ship, known as "Leviathan", docked at a hub in Metropolis.

The 1960s live-action Batman TV series featured the Batcave extensively, and portrayed it as a large but well-lit cavern containing an atomic power generator, a chemistry lab, punch-card computers,[4] and other electronic crime-fighting devices, almost always prominently labeled with their function.

The cave also includes a lengthy tunnel used to launch the Batwing, a rotating turntable that houses the Batmobile, and a large dome-like structure where Bruce's Batsuits and gadgets are stored.

In Batman Begins, the cave is still unfurnished, and the only things inside are a small workshop and a storage space for the Batsuit and its accessories, a medical area, and the Batmobile.

Storage areas for the equipment are located both under the ground and within the walls giving the room a very empty appearance with the exception of a large bank of monitors to go with a well-developed computer system.

The newest addition to the cave is "The Bat", a flying tank aircraft built by Wayne Enterprises' Applied Science Division and a Batcomputer as well as numerous landing pads and a locking case which contains the Batsuit.

Batman's numerous crime-fighting vehicles are seen parked in an adjacent compartment to the Batcave, with an adjoining subterranean garage which stores Bruce Wayne's car collection.

Freeze, the puppet Scarface, a 'shrine' to Bruce Wayne's childhood TV hero, the Gray Ghost, and the costumes of Harley Quinn, Penguin, Riddler, Mad Hatter, Firefly, and Catwoman.

During the series, Bruce typically remained in the Batcave to coordinate Terry's efforts over the suit's video-link, giving him information or offering advice, although he would enter the field if the situation desperately called for it.

Additionally, the episode "Joker's Express" reveals that the Batcave is also connected to some old mines beneath the city that were created during its past as a coal-mining town in the late 1800s.

Unlike many other incarnations of the Batcave which only have one exit/entrance, the Batmobile and other vehicles exit the cave through a variety of concealed dead-ends and disguised construction sites scattered around Gotham City.

It features three parking 'areas' for land, sea and air based vehicles and their appropriate exits from the cave, the Batcomputer, used to replay past levels and 'warp' to various landmarks in Gotham and other elements shown in Batman media such as a waterfall, a Lincoln Penny and an animatronic T-Rex.

From the cave the player can use the Batwing fast travel system, switch to alternate skins and enter the challenge map rooms as opposed to selecting from the main menu as in previous Arkham games.