Keleti quarry No 18 Cave

The Post-Industrial Quarry No. 18 cave is one of the caves located in the 3rd district of Budapest, in the Buda Landscape Protection Area of the Danube–Ipoly National Park.

Description

In the eastern part of the Buda thermal karst, at the lower mine level of the abandoned two‑storey quarry on the southeastern slope of Mount Mátyás, on the western, left side of the mine level, at an altitude of 212 metres above sea level, at the foot of a rock wall, among shrubs, is its entrance. The entrance of the Post-Industrial Quarry No. 18 cave is located northwest of the Post-Industrial Quarry No. 8 cave. The entrance is natural but was opened due to mining, 2.2 metres wide, 1.4 metres high, trench‑like and oriented horizontally.

The fissure-type cave formed in Upper Eocene limestone, in the Szépvölgy Limestone Formation, by dissolution and corrosion below the water table. Breccia and compact chert are observable within it. Its horizontal extension is 3.2 metres. Access requires a permit, but the passage can be traversed easily without special caving equipment.

In 2005 the cave was first referred to as the Post-Industrial Quarry No. 18 cave in the literature. It also appears under the names 18th Cave (Acheron 1993) and Stone Nook (Acheron 1993) in the literature on the Post-Industrial Quarry No. 18 cave. The names Mátyáshegy 3rd rock cavity (Bertalan 1976) and Mount Mátyás 3rd rock cavity (Kordos 1984) may be variants of the name for the Post-Industrial Quarry No. 18 cave.

Research History

According to testimonies of elderly residents living nearby, many cavities existed at the ground level of the quarry when the mine was operational. The numerous small caves in the wall of the upper mine yard and the many cave indications and formations suggest that mining destroyed a large cave, or at least the upper part of a large cave. The caves visible today are remnants of that large cave. The 1943 *World of Caves* records that Károly Bertalan and Béla Albert, in the systematic study of the caves around Buda, examined fourteen small cavities in the quarries of Mount Mátyás and Mount Kecske.

It first appeared in the 1957 Geographical Bulletin, and the study written by Sándor Leél-Őssy mentions the large stone quarry cavities of Mátyás Hill, which formed in nummulite limestone. On the site map in the study that shows the geographical location of the caves of the Buda Hills, the geographical location of the cavities found in the large stone quarry of Mátyás Hill can be observed. (These cavities are listed on the site map among the karstic caves.) In the book titled *Budapest természeti képe* published in 1958 it is written that in the wall of the large stone quarry of Mátyás Hill facing D there are karstic cavities. In the book *Budapest* edited by András Vitéz and Miklós Pap and published in 1961 it is mentioned that a hiker can see cavities in the stone quarry on the DK side of Mátyás Hill, which are similar to the Mátyás Hill cave but small in size.

The report published in the 1963 Karst and Cave Research Bulletin mentions that the BEAC Cave Research Group investigated the K side stone quarry of Mátyás Hill in 1962. On the quarry’s rock wall several openings are visible, of which two (in their present condition) can be called caves. No one has yet dealt with their investigation. Geologist Gábor Láng mapped the cavities. Characteristic spherical chambers indicate the cavities’ karstic origin. The largest is about 4 m in diameter. In addition to the exploration of Barit Cave, research is also promising at two other locations.

The 1964 Karst and Cave Investigation Bulletin mentions that in the quarry on Mátyás Hill in Budapest's District III, overlooking the Danube, long‑known cavity remains were found in 1963. The cavity system is highly charged with spherical chambers and hydrothermal fissures. Members of the BEAC Nature‑Travel Department Cave Investigation Group have been carrying out exploratory work at several points of the quarry since 1962. In 1963, working about 200 hours, they were able to advance forward in several places. They saw that the situation was encouraging, but only much work could yield results. They planned to continue the exploratory work in the quarry in 1964. They began the geological and mineralogical processing of the site, the precise surveying, leveling and mapping of the area. They will certainly finish the cartographic work in the spring.

The book published in 1966 titled Budai‑hegy Guide states that in another (DK) quarry on Mátyás Hill (not the Mátyás‑hill‑cave quarry) there are also small cave cavities. Nine cavities became known in this stone mine. The 1972 Karst and Cave Bulletin reported that on 24 April 1972 (at the request of the Budapest Police Headquarters), due to their disappearance, members of the Cave Rescue Service inspected the cavities of the eastern quarry of Mátyás Hill.

In the manuscript completed in 1976, written by Bertalan Károly, among the caves in the DK quarry of Mátyás Hill there may be a brief description of this cave under the name Mátyáshegyi 3. rock chamber. The manuscript states that the Mátyáshegyi 3. rock chamber is in Budapest District III, on the ÉNy side of the DK quarry depression (inner mine yard), east of the Mátyáshegyi 2. rock chamber. The cave entrance is reachable by a few‑meter handhold, but it is also visible from below because it is choked. A 1 m long, insignificant, dead end chamber. Camping place. The part of the manuscript concerning the cave was written based on a manuscript, but the mentioned manuscript no longer exists. In the 1978 report of the Vass Imre Cave Research Group it is written that the group has been researching and mapping the K quarry on Mátyás Hill for several years. Some chambers of the quarry were broken into by the young group members in 1978, resulting in the extension of several chambers by 2–3 m, but no significant results were achieved.