From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Atta Cave
Atta Cave
Atta Cave lagnates. Several pieces of calcite crystal formations were
Attahöhle moved into the public area of the cave in order to be dis-
played there.
History
Location Attendorn, Germany
Length 6670 m
Discovery 1907
Show cave opened 1907
Length of show cave 500 m
Lighting electric
Features Most visited show cave in Germany
Website Official site
Advertising postcard of 1910
The Atta Cave (German: Atta-Höhle) or Attendorn Drip-
stone Cave (Attendorner Tropfsteinhöhle) in Attendorn is
one of the largest and most beautiful dripstone caves in
Germany.
The cave was discovered during the quarrying of
limestone at the Bigge Valley Limestone Works (Biggetaler
Kalkwerk) on 19 July 1907 and was opened up by the own-
ers to tourists that same year. Today the Atta Cave is the
most-visited show cave in Germany, receiving around
350,000 tourists per year, and is an important economic
factor for the town.
Amongst its attractions are numerous calc-sinter
flowstone drapes, colourfully tinctured by iron oxides. Postcard from the time of its discovery
There are also many stalactites, stalagmites and sta-
1
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Atta Cave
The formation of the cave started in the Devonian era The cave is still in private hands today. It has been
(about 400 million years ago) when the region of the criticised for its high entry charges and ban on photogra-
present-day cave still lay in a bay of the sea. In the layers phy. [1]
of limestone then being laid down, caverns were formed
over time by carbonic acid weathering caused by the
rainwater seeping through it as well as mixed corrosion
See also
(Mischungskorrosion). • List of show caves in Germany
An earthquake several thousand years ago broke sev-
eral of the speleothems. The caves are also inhabited by
bats that get into the cave through rock crevices in the
Sources
hilltop. • Rainer Ahrweiler, Elmar Hammerschmidt:
Other parts of the cave were discovered in 1985 by Attendorner Tropfsteinhöhle. In: Die Höhlen der
Elmar Hammerschmidt. The total length of the cave is Attendorn-Elsper Doppelmulde, Karst und Höhle
6,000 metres but it has not been completely surveyed. For 1991/92, VdHK München, ISSN 0342-2062, pages
the show cave section there is a roughly 500 m long cir- 25-36
cular tour. It is reached through a 90 metre long gallery
through which visitors are guided. The original entrance References
is sealed today with a metal door. In one part of the cave,
cheese is stored, a water curtain is supposed to help stop [1] Jochen Duckeck: Die Attendorner Tropfsteinhöhle.
the smell spreading too far. Coordinates: 51°07′30″N 7°54′56″E / 51.125°N 7.91556°E /
51.125; 7.91556
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Atta_Cave&oldid=472649944"
Categories:
• Caves of Germany
• Show caves in Germany
• Geography of North Rhine-Westphalia
• Visitor attractions in North Rhine-Westphalia
This page was last modified on 22 January 2012 at 18:27. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-
ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. See Terms of use for details. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of
the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.Contact us
Privacy policy About Wikipedia Disclaimers
2