Spectacular find in Turkey – discovered near a historic site
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Not far from a famous cave, researchers have discovered a previously unknown stalactite cave. It’s a sensation. But there is a threat of explosions.
Antalya – In the Turkish holiday paradise of Antalya, researchers have discovered a previously completely unknown cave. But the find could soon disappear forever. A nearby limestone quarry threatens the area.
The first entrance leads via a shaft around 14 meters into the depth. Behind it opens an extensive system of stalactites, stalagmites, chambers and galleries. In the Konyaaltı district of Antalya province, members of the Turkish Speleology Association, together with a local environmental initiative, have discovered a never-before-mapped cave. But the stalactite cave could soon be lost forever, reports CNN Turk. The researchers have not yet reached the end of the cave.
New stalactite cave discovered in Türkiye – environmental initiative fears the worst
The newly discovered cave is located around three kilometers from İsli Cave (Karaindibi) – a well-known site with prehistoric wall paintings that is already a protected area. Their protected area had recently been expanded after a neighboring limestone quarry threatened parts of the area.
This is exactly a problem with the new cave. It is also located at a limestone quarry. Blasting for mining purposes is permitted there. A risk for the spectacular find. The environmental initiative “Geyikbayırı Yaşam Platformu” now fears that the tremors could irreparably damage the cave and the surrounding forest area. “Now a new and unregistered cave has appeared on the same line, this time within the approved area,” the organization wrote in a statement.
Sensational find in Türkiye: Archaeological site near the new cave
Just a few hundred meters away are the remains of an ancient agricultural settlement and a historic cobbled street – archaeological heritage, according to Hürriyet.de, is also in danger.
“When the protection boundaries were established, the existence of this cave was not known,” the initiative writes in the statement. Although no historical discoveries have been made in the cave itself, a scientific study is still pending. The cave entrance, its surroundings and the archaeological site urgently need to be examined by experts.
The environmentalists’ demands are therefore clear: the cave should be officially registered by the government, the existing protected area of the İsli Cave should be expanded to include the new discovery and an assessment by archaeologists and geologists should be initiated immediately.
Archaeologists in Turkey have already discovered a human face on an obelisk. The special artifact is from the Neolithic period and is 12,000 years old. (Sources: CNN Türk, Hurriyet.de) (ml)