Thuringia: funding for securing the Barbarossa cave

Bendeleben (dpa/th) - The state supports security work in the Barbarossa cave with almost 100,000 euros.

Thuringia: funding for securing the Barbarossa cave

Bendeleben (dpa/th) - The state supports security work in the Barbarossa cave with almost 100,000 euros. A corresponding funding decision from the Thuringian State Office for the Environment, Mining and Nature Conservation was handed over to the Geopark Kyffhäuser on Thursday. The geopark with the Barbarossa cave is a tourist highlight in the region. According to the state office, the approximately 80,000 visitors a year can experience a unique sulphate karst landscape and, with the Barbarossa cave, an anhydrite cave that is unique in Europe.

The cave impresses with magnificent plaster rags hanging from the cave ceiling. In combination with the hall-like rooms of the cave, some of which are more than 40 meters wide and 10 meters high, and the crystal-clear lakes, they offer a unique sight.

However, the plaster rags are exposed to weathering processes, which are associated with damage and possible danger to visitors from falling plaster shells. Safety measures are therefore necessary, especially in the so-called cathedral, a vault in the southern area of ​​the cave system. Rock anchors and nets are to prevent material from falling in the future.