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Geissenklösterle

Art of the Upper PaleolithicCaves of GermanyGeography of Baden-WürttembergLandforms of Baden-WürttembergPrehistoric sites in Germany
World Heritage Sites in Germany
Geißenklösterle
Geißenklösterle

Geissenklösterle (Geißenklösterle) is an archaeological site of significance for the central European Upper Paleolithic, located near the town of Blaubeuren in the Swabian Jura in Baden-Württemberg, southern Germany. First explored in 1963, the cave contains traces of early prehistoric art from between 43,000 and 30,000 years ago, including some of the oldest-known musical instruments and several animal figurines. Because of the historical and cultural importance of these findings, in 2017 the site became part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Caves and Ice Age Art in the Swabian Jura.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Geissenklösterle (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Geissenklösterle
Bruckfelsstraße, Gemeindeverwaltungsverband Blaubeuren

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N 48.398333333333 ° E 9.7722222222222 °
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Geißenklösterle

Bruckfelsstraße
89143 Gemeindeverwaltungsverband Blaubeuren
Baden-Württemberg, Germany
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Geißenklösterle
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Blauhöhle
Blauhöhle

The Blauhöhle is the largest cave system in the Swabian Alps in southern Germany. The Blauhöhle presumably originated in a time when the Danube still flowed through the Blau valley. Since the shifting of the Danube, several small rivers, the Schmiech, the Ach, and the Blau, have flowed through this valley. The cave system begins about 21 meters under water at the base of the Blautopf. It continues west and northwest, rising and falling several times until after a horizontal distance of about 1,200 metres (3,900 ft) it comes above the level of ground water and opens into the second big air-filled chamber. The maximum depth of the cave under water is 42 metres (138 ft). This chamber was first discovered in 1985 by Jochen Hasenmayer, who named it Mörikedom (Mörike Cathedral, named after Eduard Mörike). Hasenmayer's diving accident in the Wolfgangsee resulted in a long break in its exploration. For several years the cave has been explored by the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Blautopf (Blautopf Study Group, or Consortium), a team of cave divers from several different regional groups. This group has made progress exploring the cave, including making exact measurements of the way to the Mörikedom. The improvement of underwater breathing technology, especially the rebreather, has allowed for longer dives carrying less weight. The discovery of the Wolkenschloss (Castle of Clouds), another large, air-filled cavern, and the so-called Landweg (land-way), a long, open cave river behind the Mörikedom, were great successes for the Arbeitsgemeinschaft. Hasenmayer continued his attempts to explore the cave system in his cave submarine, Speleonaut. Since 2002 the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Höhle und Karst Grabenstetten (Cave and Karst Consortium of Grabenstetten), as a part of their work on a neighboring cave system, the Vetterhöhle, have attempted to dig a dry entrance into the Blauhöhle. In 2006 several large caverns were discovered in the Vetterhöhle, and in the autumn a connection was discovered between the Vetterhöhle and the Wolkenschloss. Also in the autumn of 2006, the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Blautopf discovered an enormous cavern at the end of the Landweg, measuring 170 m (560 ft) long by 50 m (160 ft) wide by 50 m high, which was named Apokalypse. The groups are now also working with yet another Arbeitsgemeinschaft on a sinkhole north of Blaubeuren, which is believed to be connected with the Blauhöhle behind the Apokalypse.