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GEOLOGY ON POST STAMPS |
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GEOLOGY ON POST STAMPS |
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Hiszpania / Spain
Formy naciekowe w Jaskini Smoczej (Cuevas del Drach) na Majorce.
Speleothems in the
Cave of Dragon, Mallorca.
Coll. G. Barczyk
Cuevas del Drach is the most famous and best visited cave on Mallorca.
The number of visitors allows no regular tours. The cave is just open, visitor
walk on their own down into the cave, until they reach the Lago Martel.
Lago Martel (Lake Martel) has a temperature of 17°C
and is a little salty, which proofs a subterranean connection to the
Mediterranean Sea. Every hour musicians on a boat are playing a "lake
concert". They play several compositions by Chopin
and Offenbach. It is possible to make a short boat ride
on the lake.
The name Cuevas del Drach is, of course, derived
from the dragon. The first inhabitants of Mallorca gave the dragon rather
differnt attributes: on one hand, he is evil, a sort of devil, on the other hand
he is a symbol for strength. This aspect was definitely the reason, why King
Jaime I is shown on the medieval paintings of Francesc
Comes and Pere Nisart with the dragon on his
helmet.
In the medieval legends, in the Rondaies mallorquines,
the most important collection of mallorcan fairy tales, the dragon has a third
aspect: he is the sentinel of a treasure. With his horrible looks, snake like
body and bat like wings, and his enormous strength, he defends the treasure
against intruders.
The cave was visited during centuries, an example is a
cave visit by two tourists from Barcelona in 1878. They astrayed, although they
had a local guide, and they nearly died of starvation in the cave.
The most famous name in the history of the cave is 
E.A.
Martel. He arrived early September 1896, after an invition of Archduke
Ludwig Salvator, who lived in Miramar. On the 9th September he entered the
cave the first time. Until then three chambers where already known: Cueva
Negra (Black Cave), Cueva Blanca (White Cave) and Cueva Luis
Salvator. At the end of this third chamber was a place called La ventana
(the window) where terra inkognita started.
La ventana allowed a view on an enormous lake.
Martell used his new developed gear, which were in fact two boats, to cross this
lake, which is today called Lago Martel (Lake Martel) in his honor. He
was rather impressed by this silent boat tour on one of the world's largest
subterranean lake. Behind the lake he discovered a new part of the cave, today
called Cueva de los Franceses (Cave of the French).
The members of this expedition where Martell,
his companion Luis Armand, Fernando
Moragues, son of the cave owner, and Pedro Bonel de los
Herreros, grandson of Ludwig Salvator's steward.
