Frasassi Caves Facts

In the early 70s the cavers on their dangerous work, in Italy for centuries famous Grotta di Frasassi, about 50 km west of the Adriatic city of Ancona, encountered previously unknown cave system, with winding corridors and halls decorated with stalactites and runs through limey mountains of central Apennines.

More than 13 km researchers are slowly entering the interior of the mountain, through the mud to the knees and crystal clear streams, next to the beautiful snow-white flowstone.

Today the cave is open to visitors who can admire the wonderful work of nature in all its splendor.

Sentino, a tributary of the river Esino, with the persistent erosion broke hard limestone layers in the central Apennines and pushing at the bottom of its basin opened the door to the cave. With them on the stones of the slope opened dark enters of other caves. Near the entrance to the old cave Frasassi is a chapel of Santa Maria del Frasassi, buildings from the 11th century; in the entrance hall is between 1823 and 1828 by order of Pope Leo XII. constructed hexagonal neoclassical temple. The cave was probably in ancient times the cave shrine.

Limey Highlands, in which underground water flows made caves, is a typical karst landscape: on the blocks of rocks and cliffs are unusual grooves, in many places in the ground yawn deep karst channels, river mysteriously disappear underground, while in other places appear as karst springs.

Cave bottom Cave image Frasassi Caves Grotte Di Frasassi Inside cave

All karst forms are linked to the way of becoming so are various of the cave Frasassi, belonging to the karst system Fiume-Vent, probably connected by passages. One of the most beautiful caves in the whole Italy, Hatches Grande del Vento I, is located not far from the caves Frasassi. Tunnel longer than 80 meters are coming to the lobby where it would be enough room for a cathedral. Further inland rises “Il Gigante,” giant, high icicles. Across it is Cascata. “del Niagara” is poured over the walls of the cave in depth. Unlike real, noisy Niagara Falls, this cascade of icicles emits no sound, only occasionally hear a drop that falls to the ground.

If you goes on in the underground labyrinth you will reach hall delle Candelin, beautiful halls candle. In the middle of the room are white stalagmites like a bundle of burning candles and reflected in a small cave lake.

Frasassi caves are known as prehistoric site. The national museum in Ancona are exposed to weapons, tools and remains of skeletons excavated in the soil of cave. Today the inhabitants of cave flying over the heads of visitors: a large number of bats, especially in the Grotta del Nottola, cave of bats. In addition to bats that have adapted well to life in complete darkness and who leave their hiding place at night to seek out food in the cave system has many other animal species including cave lizard and cave millipedes.

Karst Caves

In order to create such impressive karst caves, nature needed three things: easily soluble stones, plenty of water and even more time, preferably several millennia. Clean water very poor erodes limestone, marble and similar stones, but clean water in nature has very little. The water usually contains dissolved salts and acids, in particular carbonic acid, which very few types of stones can permanently resist.

Each drop, passing the surface rocks, removes a very thin layer. Over time the rock formed ridges and grooves, and underground water dripping, and later the water flows, gradually expanding cracks in larger or smaller caves. The growth of caves ends on the the day when they get out in the field of groundwater, and in it only a little drops water. Then in caves dissolved limestone is excreted in the form of icicles: literally comes to calcification.

Facts about Frasassi Caves

  • Thy are most famous show caves in Italy
  • Caves are discovered in 1971
  • There are two sanctuary-chapels, on from 1029 and other 1828
  • Depth of caves is 400 m
  • Show cave length is 5,000 m
  • In some rooms you’re not allowed to take photos
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