Magura cave is one of the highly visited sights in Bulgaria. People who love history can observe the remnants of prehistoric artwork there. When you get into the Magura cave, you will feel like you are back in history. Whether you like history or not, the cave is a natural beauty where anyone can find something interesting.
Now, without further ado, let’s learn some facts about Magura cave.
1. The Magura cave locates near the Rabisha village of Bulgaria. For that reason, it is also known as Rabisha cave.
Rabisha is a small village with a population of about 300 people. Bulgaria’s largest non-salt lake, Rabisha Lake, also locates in that area.
2. The Magura cave is popular with its 5000-year-old paintings.
Those cave paintings depict a variety of creatures, celestial bodies, tools, human activities, and many other shapes. They were drawn by primeval people. Nowadays, the site attracts tourists from all over the world.
3. The length of the cave measures over 1.5 miles (2500 meters) and the total area is about 17.8 square miles (28,600 square meters).
To make the site safer for tourists, electric lighting and steps have been installed, and the walkways were paved. These renovations little bit distort the historic look of the place but the safety is always first!
4. In 1960, the Magura Cave was recognized as a cultural monument. And, it got its “remarkable natural site” status in 1993.
Since that recognition, it boosted the number of tourists visiting there. And several media companies started shooting videos to show its mysterious wall-paintings.
5. Eight kinds of bats live in the Magura cave.
It looks like the cave is not a cozy place for people only. Bats also live there. If you feel uncomfortable seeing the bats flying around you, then you should think twice before visiting the site.
However, some sources state that although the cave is a dwelling place for 2000 bats, no of them do not bite at all or try to hurt humans. However, it is something to consider before packing your bags enthusiastically.
6. The Magura cave is wide enough to hold concerts.
Concert and a cave do not rhyme well since sound echoes inside caves. But not for the Magura cave. Musicians gather up in the cave and offer their beautiful music during Christmas and Easter holidays. Since the Magura cave is spacious enough, people supposedly do not get the feeling of claustrophobia.
7. The temperature in the cave is between 52 – 59 degrees Fahrenheit (11-15 degrees Celsius).
Interestingly, the temperature stays in that range all year round. People mostly visit the site during the summer season. Because this time of year is a good season to see other sights in Bulgaria.
8. The oldest solar calendar in Europe was discovered in the Magura Cave.
The cave paintings hold a lot of mysterious shapes. Scientists interpret some of those drawings as the depiction of earth’s motion, moon phases, the distance between the earth and the sun, and the days of a year.
Although there are a large number of theories and speculations about interpreting those signs, actually no of them proven to be factual yet.
9. The Magura Cave has several entrances.
I always thought caves have only one entrance. It appears like I was wrong. Unlike many other caves, the Magura cave is accessible through several entrances. The largest one of them is 9 ft high (2.80 m) and 19.5 ft wide (6 m).
10. Archeologists discovered several layered remnants of settlements inside the Cave and the oldest ones date back to 12000 years.
Remnants of fireplaces, stone tools, ceramics, bones, and home structures show that the cave was occupied many times by ancient humans.
FACTS ABOUT THE MAGURA CAVE 11-15
11. The Magura cave includes 750 different drawings that belong to various ages.
The drawings portray dancing female figures, hunting men, stars, animals, and several other unrecognized shapes.
12. According to a local legend, a powerful dragon lived in the cave and captured people from a nearby settlement.
The legend about a dragon and the Magura cave is one of many tales coming from a local community. People associated mysterious events with the cave and with the nearby Rabisha lake.
According to one story, the Rabisha the lake is bottomless, and a monster with bullhead lives in it. Of course, those stories are far from reality. However, there is a natural anomaly in the lake: the upper layer of the lake water is warmer, but once you dive deeper into the water, it gets colder.
13. Bulgarian, American, and German archeologists unearthed various stone tools in the cave.
Along with the stone stools, archeologists discovered fossilized bones of butchered mammals and other fragments inside the cave. According to historians, these fragments are the remnants of previous occupants of the cave, that lived from 100,000 to 400,000 B.C.
14. The Magura cave was added to UNESCO’s tentative list of World Heritage in 1984.
This status increases the historic value of the cave. And for the locals, it is a good economic opportunity since it can bring more tourists to the site.
15. The formation of the Magura cave started about 15 million years ago.
That means the Magura cave had been present way before the humans appeared on this planet. The signs of settlements traces back to bronze and iron ages.
