Gesztesi Cave

The Gesztesi stone niche is a cave located in the Vértes Mountains within the Danube–Ipoly National Park, in Várgesztes.

Description

In the outskirts of Várgesztes, about DNy from the centre of the settlement, on the artificial road leading to Gesztes Castle, after the edge of the forest about 200 m, on the right side of the road, on the north side of the valley, at an altitude of 330 m above sea level, about 15 m above the road, the cave is situated. The cave, arranged as a chapel, is easily noticeable from the road due to the stairway leading to it. Its location is marked on tourist maps with a cave symbol and its name. The cave entrance is 3 m wide, 2.3 m high, natural, irregular in shape and oriented horizontally.

The cave was formed by the corrosive action of water seeping along the thick‑bedded Triassic limestone layers, as well as by freeze‑induced rock disintegration. From the relatively large central chamber, a dissolved, spherical‑niche‑like cavity extends backward on the rear wall at about chest height. On the right side of the niche, at floor level, a 2.5 m long crawlway begins. The cave, which can be approached with an easy walk and is easily traversable, does not require a permit for entry.

In 1984 the cave was mentioned for the first time in the literature under the name Gesztesi stone niche. The cave also appears in the literature as Gesztesi stone niche (Alba Regia Cave Exploration Group 1979).

Research history

According to a manuscript prepared by the Alba Regia Cave Exploration Group in 1979, the Gesztesi stone niche had not previously been mentioned in any written work. The cave is located on the border of Várgesztes (Komárom County), 205° from the village church, 800 m away, at an altitude of 325 m above sea level. While walking along the artificial road from the centre of Várgesztes to the castle, after the edge of the forest about 200 m, on the right side of the road, the stone niche is 10 m above the road and visible from it. The cave is 3 m wide, 2.5 m high and 2.5 m long. It was created by the corrosive action of water seeping along limestone layers inclined at 23°, and later also shaped by rock disintegration caused by freezing.

From the cave, at about 1 m height, a 1 m long, bending, open, sack‑shaped cavity opens. On the right side, from the talp‑sill following the rock slope, a 2.5 m long crawling passage begins, ending in a collapse. Above the niche, 3 m higher than the niche, a vertical vault 0.7 m wide and 1.8 m high can be seen. The wall of the elliptical vault is corroded. The cave is filled with rock debris and humus. Ferenc Szolga can show the small‑significance cavity, which is not worth further exploration.

The manuscript contains the cave plan map and two cross‑section maps. The maps depict the cave at a scale of 1:100. The plan map indicates the east‑west direction on the map sheet. The plan map shows the location of the two cross‑sections in the cave. For the preparation of the maps, the cave was surveyed by Imre Gönczöl and Károly Kökény on 25 February 1979. Using the survey, Ferenc Zentai drew the maps in 1979. The manuscript shows a map of Várgesztes and its surroundings (approximately 1:25 000 scale). The map indicates the east‑west direction. On the accompanying map (approximately 1:20 000 scale) belonging to the map, the geographical location of the Gesztesi stone niche can be observed. The manuscript contains two photographs illustrating the cave. One photograph shows the cave entrance and interior, the other shows the corrosion cavity (with icicles) in the stone niche. The photographs were taken by Imre Gönczöl.

In the national cave list of the book *Caves of Hungary* published in 1984, the cave appears among the caves of the Vértes Mountains under the name Gesztesi-kőfülke. Associated with the list, the geographical location of the cave is shown on a 1:500 000 scale map presenting the geographical positions of the caves of the Danube‑Foot Hills. In the book written by Béni Kornél and Viszló Levente, which saw the light of day in 1996, it is stated that the Gesztesi kőfülke, like the Eper‑hegyi‑odú, is a small corrosion‑originated stone niche. The stone niche is one of five small caves in the Várgesztes subarea.

According to the registry sheet prepared on the basis of a BTI cadastral survey on 31 May 2003, the Gesztesi-kőfülke with cadastral number 4522‑21 is located in Várgesztes in the Vértes Mountains (Komárom‑Esztergom County). The coordinates of the cavity entrance (Trimble Geoexplorer 3) are: X: 600674, Y: 236200, Z: 330. The cave is in a rock wall on a hillside, in a forest, and has a 3 m wide, 2.3 m high, natural, irregularly shaped, horizontal entrance. The thoroughly surveyed cave is 6 m long, has a vertical extent of 3.5 m, a height of 2.5 m, a depth of 1 m and a horizontal extent of 4 m. The cavity lies in Triassic limestone. The formation of the cave was prepared by stratification. The cavity was created due to freeze‑thaw rock disintegration and corrosion.

The cave with a stone‑cell shape has a horizontal floor, and its typical passage type is irregular. It contains a dome. Thematic processing: map, photograph, cadastral record, description. In 1979 the cave was mentioned for the first time in the literature (cadastral survey). The essentially altered cave has a traversed, deepened floor. It can be approached by a light walk, the easily walkable cave does not require a permit for visitation. It is built for religious purposes. It is not known when it was built. It is locked with a grate door in good condition. It is not known when the grate door was installed. There is a shrine base, a Virgin Mary statue and flower vases in the cave. Competent nature‑protection authority: Danube–Ipoly National Park Directorate. Since the 1979 cave cadastral survey the cave has been arbitrarily heavily modified, turned into a chapel, and locked with a metal grate door. During the construction a stone‑built shrine base was installed, and a Virgin Mary statue was placed in it. When the Egri Csabáék visited, the chapel was decorated with many flowers (both artificial and living). Most likely changes also occurred in the front of the cave, the ground was leveled and a bench was assembled. The cave and its surroundings can be said to be overall orderly.