FROM KRÁSNOHORSKÁ CAVE TO 3 CAVES by Portfólio Vydavateľstva JSL

THE DLHÁGOMBASEK LÚKA BRANCH CAVE OF THE ANDRÁSSY FAMILY

D bee

His grandson István Andrássy III was the last family member to live in Krásna Hôrka castle. After the devastating fire in 1817, caused by lightning, his widow, “Rain” Mária in the cave Festetich, had theOCHTINÁ castle repaired only to anCAVE absolutely ARAGONITE necessary extent. Shortly afterwards she moved out of the Principal features: Multicoloured needles, tufts and spirals of aracastle, and it has not been lived in ever since. gonite. Their luminescence is caused by impuritie. Aragonite is a György Andrássy IV, father of Dénes (Dionysus), is form of calcium carbonate, chem. CaCO₃, originally described by the the sole heir of István III, and inherits the Krásna HorGerman Abraham Werner in 1796. He named it after the first finding ská and Štítnik estates, Ložín (near Michalovce), Monok place in Aragon, north-eastern Spain. (Hungary), mines in Gemer and –the at Drnava. The Rožňava Cavers´ Dripstone 34steelworks m duration Year of discovery/public accessibility, of tour, temperature:

1954/1972; Length: 300 m/30 min; 7–8°C. The entrance tunnel is 144 m long. Visitors climb a total of 19 m up 104 steps. Rarity: Only two other caves in the world have aragonite “decoration”, in Spain and Argentina. Play of colours

Memorial plaque from 1998 on the wall of the former stately home

It would be hard to find a similar couple in all the history of Gemer. Regardless of social status or faith, they supLocality/Contact: In the village area of and Ochtiná. tel.: +421 58 488 ported the building of schools, orphanages churches. 10 51-52; oaj@ssj.sk. The cave is 5 km from the small town of Štítnik, Dénes, a keen painter himself, was also a patron of the arts. where there is a unique Gothic church with very valuable His wife Františka was more socially-minded. Both14/15th century frescoes no.entombed 526/ 587).in the great art nouveau husband and (road wife are Further information from Správa slovenských jaskýň Mausoleum nearby Krásnohorské Podhradie. Cave visitorsaton the tour. (Slovak Caves Administration), www.ssj.sk.

D O M I C A , G O M B A S E K A N D O C H T I N Á A R AG O N I T E C AV E S

Princi ground r Visitors m and equi Year o perature:P 1964 and gth visitorsBa4 com Y 192 11° R Fil Do Ge (18 L 2k Rarity ground). que in th Locali slopes of Conta stankov@ In the vil 905 795 9

K R Á S N O H O RS K Á C AV E

The Latin motto translates as: Not to seem, but to be!

The family coat of arms is painted above the sacristy in the church.

H I S T O R Y O F T H E V I L L A G E A N D T H E A N D R Á S S Y FA M I LY

FROM KRÁSNOHORSKÁ CAVE to 3 CAVES

on foot or bicycle

Principal features: Unique, up to three-metre long, hanging hollow The founder of this branch was György Andrássy II, dripstone “quills”. once it was agreed to split the family property in 1695. He Year of discovery/public accessibility, duration of tour, temperature: acquired Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka, Lipovník, Drnava, Ko1951/1955. Of the total length 1525 m, 285 m is publicly accessible. Visiváčová, and the no longer existing Kornalippa. tors do this route twice. Number of steps on the route: 87, with 7–8 m of climbing. Temp. 9°C. Rarity: Decoration resembles “stone rain”. Locality/Contact: Entrance in the area of Slavec village, just off the Rožňava – Plešivec road. Gombasek is 16 km away from Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka. Tel.: +421 58 788 20 20; gombj@ssj.sk.

Childr Season 9:00 The ca guest-ho liarize to registered By the beyond w further o appearan Štefan U of the or Visitors Castle fro

Note.: Cav frequent k come from stalagmite Lat. stalac

KRÁSNOHORSKÁ DLHÁ LÚKA Várhosszúrét

From the mid-16th century onwards there is an indissoluble bond between this Gemer village and the Andrássy family.

1338 First written mention. The village belongs to the Krásna Hôrka estate. 1567 The Bebek family, then owners of the feudal estate, die out on the spear side. 1570 The Turks burn the village and take many inhabitants into captivity. 1578 The king appoints Peter Andrássy as castle captain to administer Krásna Hôrka castle and estate – the first Andrássy “steps onto Gemer soil”. 1695 and later The Andrássy family agree to split their property → two branches are created, one in Betliar (the older) and the other in Dlhá Lúka (the younger). 1725 Plague epidemic. 1754 The twin-towered Roman Catholic church is built in Baroque style. It is modified in the late 19th century into neo-Gothic style.

The Baroque finds perfection in circles and ellipses. It is also symbolic of the Counter-reformation, especially after the Thirty Years War (1618–48). The local church is consecrated to St.George the martyr (†303 ?), who died during the great persecution of Christians under emperor Diocletian (284–305). He is most often portrayed fighting a dragon → cf. Revelation 12 (7–9). This motif reappears in the high altar painting. The name George was very popular in the Andrássy family, with five different sons being christened this way! These two reasons (probably) explain the patrocinium (Latin protection, i.e. the patron-saint) of this church. In Slovakia his feast-day is 24th April, while in other countries it’s the day before. 1820 The local school is established. For capacity reasons the new school was built opposite the church in 1871. 1928 Building of the village cultural hall, mainly thanks to locally-born schoolteacher Jozef Balázs. 1938–45 As a result of the First Viennese Arbitration of 2nd November 1938, the village becomes part of Hungary again. 1964 Discovery of the cave.

THE DLHÁ LÚKA BRANCH OF THE ANDRÁSSY FAMILY

KRÁSNOHORSKÁ CAVE

Lapides excavant aquÆ … As the waters wear away the stones … The Book of Job (14,19a)

The Latin motto translates as: Not to seem, but to be!

The family coat of arms is painted above the sacristy in the church.

His grandson István Andrássy III was the last family member to live in Krásna Hôrka castle. After the devastating fire in 1817, caused by lightning, his widow, Mária Festetich, had the castle repaired only to an absolutely necessary extent. Shortly afterwards she moved out of the castle, and it has not been lived in ever since. György Andrássy IV, father of Dénes (Dionysus), is the sole heir of István III, and inherits the Krásna Horská and Štítnik estates, Ložín (near Michalovce), Monok (Hungary), mines in Gemer and the steelworks at Drnava.

Memorial plaque from 1998 on the wall of the former stately home

It would be hard to find a similar couple in all the history of Gemer. Regardless of social status or faith, they supported the building of schools, orphanages and churches. Dénes, a keen painter himself, was also a patron of the arts. His wife Františka was more socially-minded. Both husband and wife are entombed in the great art nouveau Mausoleum at nearby Krásnohorské Podhradie.

H I S T O R Y O F T H E V I L L A G E A N D T H E A N D R Á S S Y FA M I LY

The founder of this branch was György Andrássy II, once it was agreed to split the family property in 1695. He acquired Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka, Lipovník, Drnava, Kováčová, and the no longer existing Kornalippa.

Principal features: Created through the action of the underground river Buzgó, dissolving the dolomites and limestones. Visitors must be led by a guide – everyone gets special clothing and equipment, and it is necessary to use ropes and ladders. Year of discovery/public accessibility, duration of tour, temperature: The cave was discovered by Rožňava speleologists in 1964 and was made accessible in 2000. Minimum number of visitors 4, max. 10; 60 min.; 8º C. An unusual shape called helictis (spiral)

Children under 15 must be accompanied by their parents! Season: 15th June – 15th September. Cave tours start at: 9:00 a.m.; 11:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m; Out of season: ☎. The cave entrance is located about 800 m from the Jozefína guest-house. A nature trail with six information boards familiarize tourists with the caves of the Slovakian Karst which are registered with UNESCO. By the river Čremošná there is well-preserved water-mill, beyond which begins the Slovakian Karst National Park. 300 m further on you come to the Virgin Mary’s Chapel, whose present appearance dates from 2000 and is the work of local woodcarver Štefan Ulman Jr. with his co-workers. The first written mention of the original chapel, which burned down, dates from 1748. Visitors will appreciate the wonderful view of Krásna Hôrka Castle from here, just 5 km way as the crow flies.

Note.: Cave visitors are most impressed with the beauty of the two most frequent karst cave features – stalagmites and stalactites. These names come from ancient Greek and Latin. Stalagmite (standing dripstone), Lat stalagmites from Greek stálagma = a drop. Stalactite (hanging dripstone) Lat. stalactites from Greek stalaktós = dripping.

THE DLHÁ LÚKA BRANCH OF THE ANDRÁSSY FAMILY

KRÁSNOHORSKÁ CAVE Lapides excavant aquÆ … As the waters wear away the stones … The Book of Job (14,19a)

n st

r e

lt y

is r

The Latin motto translates as: Not to seem, but to be!

The family coat of arms is painted above the sacristy in the church.

r sf).

y y! m n n-

of y

Memorial plaque from 1998 on the wall of the former stately home

H I S T O R Y O F T H E V I L L A G E A N D T H E A N D R Á S S Y FA M I LY

Rarity: 34 m stalagmite (dripstone, growing up from the ground). Also called the Rožňava Cavers’ Dripstone, it is unique in the world for occurring in a moderate climatic zone. Locality: Just to the south-east of the village, on the lower slopes of the Silica Plateau. Contact: Jaroslav Stankovič (warden): cell: +421 905 412 048; stankov@ke.psg.sk; www.krasnohorskajaskyna.sk. In the village: Penzión (guest-house) Jozefína, no. 113; cell: +421 905 795 940; info@penzionjozefina.sk. Children under 15 must be accompanied by their parents! Season: 15th June – 15th September. Cave tours start at: 9:00 a.m.; 11:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m; Out of season: ☎. The cave entrance is located about 800 m from the Jozefína guest-house. A nature trail with six information boards familiarize tourists with the caves of the Slovakian Karst which are registered with UNESCO. By the river Čremošná there is well-preserved water-mill, beyond which begins the Slovakian Karst National Park. 300 m further on you come to the Virgin Mary’s Chapel, whose present appearance dates from 2000 and is the work of local woodcarver Štefan Ulman Jr. with his co-workers. The first written mention of the original chapel, which burned down, dates from 1748. Visitors will appreciate the wonderful view of Krásna Hôrka Castle from here, just 5 km way as the crow flies. Note.: Cave visitors are most impressed with the beauty of the two most frequent karst cave features – stalagmites and stalactites. These names come from ancient Greek and Latin. Stalagmite (standing dripstone), Lat. stalagmites from Greek stálagma = a drop. Stalactite (hanging dripstone), Lat. stalactites from Greek stalaktós = dripping.

3 CAVES IN THE SLOVAKIAN KARST

Domica Cave, Gombasek Cave and Ochtiná Aragonite Cave have been registered since 1995 (together with Krásnohorská Cave and Jaso Cave) in UNESCO’s World Natural Heritage List. Later, in 2000, Dobšinská Ice Cave was also added to this List.

The Rožňava Cavers´ Dripstone – 34 m

Cave visitors on the tour.

K R Á S N OH ORS K Á C AV E

DOMICA

Principal features: Majestic decorations – spacious chambers. Len gth: 5 080 m, with 1 315 m publicly accessible. This cave links up wit Baradla Cave in Hungary, and together they are part of the UNESC complex Domica–Aggtelek. Year of discovery/public accessibility, duration of tour, temperatur 1926/1932, shorter route: 780 m / 45 min.; longer route: 1 180 m/60 mi 11°C. Rarity: Boat trip possible on the underground river Styx (140 m Filming was done here for the folk-tale “Salt Over Gold” by Pav Dobšinský (1828–1885), who came from nearby Slavošovce. Th Gemer writer is also known as the Slovak Hans Christian Anderse (1805–1875). Locality/Contact: Entrance is about 10 km south-east of Plešivec, 2 km from the border with Hungary. Tel: +421 58 788 20 10; domica@ssj.sk.

Majko’s House – the Roman Baths

3 CAVES IN THE SLOVAKIAN KARST

… … a)

Domica Cave, Gombasek Cave and Ochtiná Aragonite Cave have been registered since 1995 (together with Krásnohorská Cave and Jasov Cave) in UNESCO’s World Natural Heritage List.

rs. ng

Later, in 2000, Dobšinská Ice Cave was also added to this List. DOMICA

mn of

he i-

The Rožňava Cavers´ Dripstone – 34 m

K R Á S N O H O RS K Á C AV E

Principal features: Majestic decorations – spacious chambers. Length: 5 080 m, with 1 315 m publicly accessible. This cave links up with Baradla Cave in Hungary, and together they are part of the UNESCO complex Domica–Aggtelek. Year of discovery/public accessibility, duration of tour, temperature: 1926/1932, shorter route: 780 m / 45 min.; longer route: 1 180 m/60 min; 11°C. Rarity: Boat trip possible on the underground river Styx (140 m). Filming was done here for the folk-tale “Salt Over Gold” by Pavol Dobšinský (1828–1885), who came from nearby Slavošovce. This Gemer writer is also known as the Slovak Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875). Locality/Contact: Entrance is about 10 km south-east of Plešivec, 2 km from the border with Hungary. Tel: +421 58 788 20 10; domica@ssj.sk.

na ire

ll, m nt er on 8. ka

st es at. e),

Cave visitors on the tour.

Majko’s House – the Roman Baths.

Principal features: Unique, up to three-metre long, hanging hollow dripstone “quills”. Year of discovery/public accessibility, duration of tour, temperature: 1951/1955. Of the total length 1525 m, 285 m is publicly accessible. Visitors do this route twice. Number of steps on the route: 87, with 7–8 m of climbing. Temp. 9°C. Rarity: Decoration resembles “stone rain”. Locality/Contact: Entrance in the area of Slavec village, just off the Rožňava – Plešivec road. Gombasek is 16 km away from Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka. Tel.: +421 58 788 20 20; gombj@ssj.sk.

“Rain” in the cave OCHTINÁ ARAGONITE CAVE Principal features: Multicoloured needles, tufts and spirals of aragonite. Their luminescence is caused by impuritie. Aragonite is a form of calcium carbonate, chem. CaCO₃, originally described by the German Abraham Werner in 1796. He named it after the first finding place in Aragon, north-eastern Spain. Year of discovery/public accessibility, duration of tour, temperature: 1954/1972; Length: 300 m/30 min; 7–8°C. The entrance tunnel is 144 m long. Visitors climb a total of 19 m up 104 steps. Rarity: Only two other caves in the world have aragonite “decoration”, in Spain and Argentina. Play of colours

Locality/Contact: In the village area of Ochtiná. tel.: +421 58 488 10 51-52; oaj@ssj.sk. The cave is 5 km from the small town of Štítnik, where there is a unique Gothic church with very valuable 14/15th century frescoes (road no. 526/ 587). Further information from Správa slovenských jaskýň (Slovak Caves Administration), www.ssj.sk.

D O M I C A , G O M B A S E K A N D O C H T I N Á A R AG O N I T E C AV E S

GOMBASEK CAVE

KRÁSNOHORSKÁ DLHÁ LÚKA Várhosszúrét

The village lies on the northern slopes of the Silica Plateau to the south of Rožňava, where the Pačiansky stream flows into the river Čremošná. Baroque twin-towered (!) St.George’s church, built in 1754 and renovated in neo-Gothic style in 1895. Medieval Krásna Hôrka castle above the neighbouring village of Krásnohorské Podhradie is 8.5 km away. Road distances in km: KRÁSNOHORSKÁ DLHÁ LÚKA: - Krásnohorské Podhradie: 6; - Betliar: 14; - Rožňava: 8; - Zádiel: 25; - Košice: 63. Caves: - Domica: 30; - Gombasek: 16; - Ochtiná Aragonite Cave: 27. Hungary – Monok: 110 – 1.½ 17th C., place of origin of the Dlhá Lúka (Monok) family branch. Romania – Sâncrăieni, (Csíkszentkirály in Hungarian), place of origin of the whole Andrássy family: 680. The village is home to the Gemer Craftsmen’s Association, est. 2002, organizers of the popular annual Gemer Crafts Fair since 2006. www.gomorikezmuvesek.sk This brochure has been supported by: Penzión Adriana, č. 101 | +421 903 557 937 | www.penzion-adriana.sk Penzión Bernáth, č. 119 | +421 915 787 868 | www.penzionbernath.sk Penzión Jozefína, č. 113 | +421 905 795 940 | www.penzionjozefina.sk – the starting-point for cave visitors – everyone gets their caving gear here. Village coat of arms Number of inhabitants: 700

With financing from the Programme for Village Renovation

© Jozef Soročin © Design/Map/Layout: Jozef Soročin, Jr., www.sorocin.carbonmade.com © Photographs: Peter Olekšák, peter.oleksak@centrum.sk Jaroslav Stankovič – caves, stankov@ke.psg.sk © Translation: Andrew Billingham, ajbilingual@gmail.com © Published for 049 45 Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka | Tel.-fax.: 058/732 68 60, www.krhdlhaluka.sk, by: Jozef Soročin, Martina Rázusa 1848/6, SK – 071 01 Michalovce, sorocin23@gmail.com © Printed by: Rotaprint, s. r. o., Barčianska 68, SK – 040 17 Košice, 2012

MORE GEMS IN THE AREA Krásna Hôrka Castle

Krásn Dlh

The castle was badly damaged by fire on 10th March 2012.

The Mausoleum‘s majestic cupola

The Red Room in Betliar House

MORE GEMS IN THE AREA Krásna Hôrka Castle

Krásno Dlhá

The castle was badly damaged by fire on 10th March 2012.

The Mausoleum‘s majestic cupola

The Red Room in Betliar House

Gutta cavat lapidem non vi, sed saepe cadendo

A drop wears away stone not by force, but by frequent falling Cariopontus (†1056 ?) Ad totius corporis aegritudines remedia, 1531; I, 17 UA

Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka

HIKING TRAILS

Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka (yellow marks) – Škridlový košiar (green) – – Lukáčova bučina (blue) – Silica (red) – Silická Brezová – – Kečovo – Domica Cave Trail length: 22 km, time: 6:30 hours, difficulty: medium 1T -1 Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka (yellow) – Škridlový košiar (green) – Zajačia brána (red) – Žedem, studňa – chata Rakyta – Silica (red) – Kečovo – Domica Cave Trail length: 23 km, time: 7:00 hours, difficulty: medium 2T Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka (yellow) – Škridlový košiar (green) – Lukáčova bučina (green) – Závozná, horáreň (yellow) – Gombasek Cave Trail length: 15 km, time: 4:30 hours, difficulty: medium 2T -1 Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka (yellow) – Škridlový košiar (green) – Zajačia brána (red) – Žedem, studňa – chata Rakyta – Silica (yellow) – Silická ľadnica – Závozná, horáreň (yellow) – Gombasek Cave Trail length: 18 km, time: 5:00 hours, difficulty: medium 3T Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka (following the river Čremošná) – Brzotín – – Kružná (yellow) – Veľký vrch (green) – Gerlašská skala (blue) – – Štítnik – Hrádok – Ochtiná Aragonite Cave Trail length: 32 km, time: 10:00 hours, difficulty: high

CYCLE TRAILS

M 1:175 000 1 cm = 1750 m

Note: These trails are appropriately marked in the field. They all begin at the Council Office in Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka.Visitors can find more information on the posters in three languages (SK, H, GB). There are maps in the grounds of the local pub Hostinec Buzgó, at the car-park below Krásna Hôrka castle, on the wall of the bus station in Rožňava and at the car-parks outside Domica and Gombasek Caves. We also recommend the map: SHOCart Slovenský Kras, ed. 2007, & the tourist guide: Slovenský kras, Horný Gemer, ed. 2004, www.dajama.sk.

Gutta cavat lapidem non vi, sed saepe cadendo

A drop wears away stone not by force, but by frequent falling Cariopontus (†1056 ?) Ad totius corporis aegritudines remedia, 1531; I, 17

HIKING TRAILS

CYCLE TRAILS

Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka (3rd class road) – Lipovník – Jablonovské sedlo – Soroška (retaining wall) – Hrušov (3rd class road) – Silická Jablonica – Silica red) – Silická Brezová – Kečovo – Domica Cave Trail length: 34 km, difficulty: medium 2C Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka (3rd class road) – Lipovník – Jablonovské sedlo (red) – Soroška (retaining wall) – Hrušov (3rd class road) – – Silická Jablonica – Silica (road no. 29) – Gombasek Cave Trail length: 30 km, difficulty: medium 3C Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka (3rd class road) – Jovice – Rožňava (2nd class road no. 526) – Rudná – Rakovnica – Rožňavské Bystré – – Honce – Štítnik – Ochtiná – Ochtiná Aragonite Cave Trail length: 27 km, difficulty: high Note: These trails are appropriately marked in the field. They all begin at the Council Office in Krásnohorská Dlhá Lúka.Visitors can find more information on the posters in three languages (SK, H, GB). There are maps in the grounds of the local pub Hostinec Buzgó, at the car-park below Krásna Hôrka castle, on the wall of the bus station in Rožňava and at the car-parks outside Domica and Gombasek Caves. We also recommend the map: SHOCart Slovenský Kras, ed. 2007, & the tourist guide: Slovenský kras, Horný Gemer, ed. 2004, www.dajama.sk.