Berva Cave

Berva Cave is among the specially protected caves of Hungary. It is located in the Bükki National Park. Remains of Pleistocene mammals were recovered from the cave.

Description

It opens on private land at the edge of the Felnémet district of Eger, on the left side of the southern end of the Berva Valley, at an altitude of 243 metres above sea level. It is situated about 13 metres above the valley floor. To the north of the cave opens the Bervavölgyi rock cavity. It has two entrances. This now inactive water‑draining cave developed in Triassic limestone.

During the 1933 excavation, bone remains of cave bear, cave hyena, mammoth, giant deer, ancient bison and other Pleistocene mammals came to light. In addition to the bone material, archaeological finds were also uncovered, but they are not significant. At the time of the survey by Ottokár Kadić the cavity was 16 metres long. Not far above the cavity, on the hilltop, a small narrow fissure is described, which may be the collapsed rear part of the cave. In its passage, in some places, cemented middle‑Miocene cave deposits filled to the ceiling have preserved limestone pebbles with drill‑shell fragments.

The cave occurs in the literature as the 2nd chamber (Bertalan, Schőnviszky 1973–1974), Lower Bervavölgy Cave, Berva Cave (Vértes 1965), Berva‑völgyi 2nd chamber (Kordos 1984), Bervavölgyi 2nd chamber (Bertalan 1976), Dorót‑hole (Borovszky, Sziklay 1909), Drót‑hole (Dely 1970), Dróthole (Borovszky, Sziklay 1909) and Dróthole (Borovszky, Sziklay 1909). The wire‑related names were probably given by local residents because of a bronze rod found there. In 1934 the cave was first called Berva Cave in the literature.

Research history

The book published in 1909, *Hungary’s Counties and Cities*, mentions the cave under the names Dorót‑hole, Dróthole and Dróthole. The description states that among the natural attractions of Felnémet the rock cave located in the Berva forest and the one called Dróthole are worth mentioning. The cave lies on the Felnémet border and can be described as a cromlech built of megalithic stones. In the Little Bükk there are few such cavities, because its material is not limestone. Dróthole was a burial mound, probably named by the locals after a bronze rod found there. In 1927, by opening the fissure above the cave, members of the Eger branch of the Nature Lovers Tourist Association attempted to gain access to the continuation of the cave.

In 1930 the cave was discovered by János Dancza, who explored it, measured it, and prepared a sketch map of the cavity. In 1933, on behalf of the Institute of Geology, Ottokár Kadić carried out paleontological excavations in Berva Cave and the other caves of the area. This was the most promising and therefore the first site of the series of investigations around Eger. At that time Ottokár Kadić surveyed the cave, then using the survey Mária Mottl drew the longitudinal section map of the cave and two cross‑section maps.

According to the study published in 1937 by László Schőnviszky, the cave opens on the slope of Felnémet, in an area of a scout camp. At the end of the small 16 m long water‑draining cave there is a blocked sinkhole. Gyula Bartalos mistakenly wrote that the cave is a chromatic crack consisting of large stones. Remains of Ice Age mammals were found in the cave. In 1938 a publication by József Kerekes appeared, which contains the geological description of the cave. The publication includes a black‑and‑white photograph showing the entrance of the cave. The photograph was taken by József Kerekes. In the book written by László Vértes and published in 1965 it is mentioned that on the slope of Felnémet, at the head of the Berva valley, at an altitude of 230 m above sea level, is the entrance of the 16 m long Berva cave. Inside the cave, beneath humus soil there is a light‑brown limestone‑debris clay, below which there is also light‑brown quartz‑gravelly sandy clay.

In the upper, light brown fill the giant hyena, the cave bear and its associated fauna indicate the W ½ interstadial. Mottl Mária classified it among the Solutrean I fauna. In this layer there were 4 atypical flint flakes and one Levallois flake with a striking surface. The cave entrance is located at the end of Berva Valley D, east of Felnémet, at an altitude of 230 m above sea level, as stated in the 1970 book *Bükk Travel Guide*. In the 16 m long cave, the bones of a cave bear and a giant hyena were found during excavation, as well as several Paleolithic flint flakes from the cave. The Bervavölgyi rock chamber is located east of the cave.

According to the manuscript completed in 1976 and written by Bertalan Károly, the Berva Cave in the Bükk Mountains, located in Felnémet, has additional names Drót-lyuk and Bervavölgyi 2nd chamber. Its entrance is on the left side of the end of Berva Valley D, at an altitude of 230 m above sea level. The entrance opens onto a broad dome on the mountain summit. The sclerotic water‑draining cave is 16 m long. Excavation was carried out in the cave. The part of the manuscript concerning the cave was written based on 5 literary works. In the *Hungarian Speleology Bibliography* compiled by Bertalan Károly and László Schőnviszky and published in 1976, the cave located in the Bükk Mountains, Felnémet, is listed as Berva Cave, 2nd chamber, with name variants Drót-lyuk. The cave name index lists 13 literary works that deal with the cave. The 1944 decree No. 43 does not mention it.

In the publication titled *Bükk útikalauz* published in 1977 it is written that the Berva Cave is at the D end of the Berva valley between Felnémet and ÉK. The book *Barlangok a Bükkben* published in 1979 does not mention the cave. In the nationwide cave list of the book *Magyarország barlangjai* that appeared in 1984, the cave located in the Bükk Mountains is listed under the name Berva Cave with the name variants Drót-lyuk and Berva-völgyi 2. sz. üreg. Associated with the list is a 1:500 000 scale map showing the geographical location of the caves of the Aggtelek Karst and the Bükk Mountains, indicating the geographical location of the cave.