Devil's Cave, Limestone cave in Franconian Switzerland, Germany
Devil's Cave is a karst cave in the Frankendolomite (Malm Delta, Jurassic) near Pottenstein, with a 25-metre-wide, 14-metre-high entrance portal. Its show-cave section runs about 1,700 metres, of which roughly 800 metres are walked on guided tours through three large halls: the Kuppelsaal, the Barbarossadom (about 45 metres long, 18 metres wide and 18 metres high) and the Riesensaal. The halls are linked by narrow, artificially driven tunnels.
Local people discovered the cave system before 1922, when organized exploration started. These investigations uncovered remains of cave bears from approximately 25,000 years ago.
The name refers to livestock that vanished near the cave and was blamed on the Devil; centuries later, after exploration, the missing animals and numerous deer and cave bears were found to have fallen in and died. A reconstructed cave bear skeleton is shown on the tour. Since 1994 the entrance hall has hosted the summer concert series Kultur in der Teufelshöhle.
Tours last about an hour and cover roughly 800 metres of the 1,700-metre show cave section, passing through three large halls linked by narrow tunnels. Guides can switch on loudspeakers with English explanations on any tour at no extra charge, so ask at the start. Nordic walking trails pass both the entrance and the exit and lead into the Weiherbach valley.
A side tunnel has housed the Teufelshöhle therapy centre since 1986, where speleotherapy is used within therapeutic cures. It is a treatment facility, not a visitor attraction, so tours do not include healing sessions. In another side passage, the research group Höhle und Karst Franken has run Germany's only cave laboratory since 1970.
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