Negyedhármas Cave

The Negyedhármas Cave is a cave located in the Pilis Mountains within the Danube–Ipoly National Park, in the area of Oszoly.

Description

It is situated in the outskirts of Csobánka, at Margitliget. The entrance of the cave is on the southernmost side of a large rock formation rising above Margitliget. A defined path leads to the entrance. The cave was formed in the upper Triassic Dachstein limestone under phreatic conditions. On the walls of the cave, composed of dying dome chambers and a fissure, stalactites stuck to the walls can be observed. The cave is very flat, only crawlable, and uncomfortable to walk. The large amount of rock debris inside the cave also makes visiting it difficult.

In 1975 the cave was first called Negyedhármas Cave in the literature. In the literature the cave also appears under the names Margitligeti cavity (Kordos 1981) and Negyedhármas Cave (Kordos 1971).

Research history

In the book *Pilis útikalauz* published in 1967 it was reported that on the southern side facing Oszoly of Csobánka, among the limestone rocks surrounded by forest, there are several insignificant cavities. According to the notice published in the 1969 Karst and Cave Research Bulletin, in August 1969 the Speleology Cave Research Group placed fixed points in the Oszoly and the eight smaller and larger cavities on the Oszoly side during a camp organized in Kevélyek.

On March 22, 1970 and April 26, 1970 László Kordos examined the cave’s climate with an Assmann aspirating psychrometer. In 1970 László Kordos and Erzsébet Wehovszky surveyed the cave with loss points and a mining compass. Based on the survey László Kordos produced and drew a floor plan map at a scale of 1:100 and a longitudinal section map. According to the survey the cave is 5 m long and 1.3 m deep.

In the 1970 report of the Speleology Cave Exploration Group there is a detailed description of the cave and its research history. The report states that the entrance of the Negyedhármas cave is at the foot of the large rock formation rising above Margitliget. It consists of a filled, collapsing niche and a fissure. The cave opens in the fractured layers of Dachstein limestone. There are dripstones stuck on the walls. Its filling is humus-rich, rocky. It is probably of karst origin. The cave is damp, but dripping is only observable during snow melt. The cave does not appear in the literature and previous researchers are unknown. In 1970 members of the Speleology Cave Exploration Group examined it. The cave can be viewed without equipment. The annex of the report includes the 1970 maps.

In the book Pilis guidebook published in 1974, in the list of caves of the Pilis Mountains and the Visegrád Mountains (pages 19–20) it is mentioned that among the caves of the Pilis Mountains and the Visegrád Mountains are the Oszoly caves. According to the section describing the caves of the Pilis Mountains, there are a dozen small caves among the Oszoly rocks rising above Csobánka. These were mapped and regularly explored by the Speleology Cave Exploration Group. Most of these small caves are not very spectacular, but they must be mentioned because some of them provide excellent bivouac possibilities in the Oszoly rock walls regularly visited by tourists, especially rock climbers, and in their vicinity.

Published in the 1975 MKBT Report, the 1970 report's section on the cave appeared together with the maps attached to the report. The Negyedhármas Cave opens at the foot of the large rock group rising above Margitliget, on the southern side. It consists of a decaying spherical chamber and a fissure. It formed in Dachstein limestone. There are dripstones embedded in the walls. The fill is humus-rich, stony. The climate measurement results are shown in Table 1. László Kordos mapped it in 1970 with lost points. 5 m long and 1.3 m deep. Previous researchers are unknown. The publication contains a site drawing showing the geographic locations of Csúcs Hill and the Oszoly caves. The drawing shows the geographic location of Negyedhármas Cave.

In the manuscript written by Károly Bertalan and completed in 1976 it is stated that Negyedhármas Cave is located in the Pilis Mountains, in the Kevély group, at Pomáz. The cave entrance is between cracks at the foot of the large rock group rising above Margitliget. The cave is 5 m long and 1.3 m deep. It is of water origin, very filled, a decaying dripstone spherical chamber and a small fissure. The part of the manuscript concerning the cave was written based on two literary works. In the 1981 first–second semester issue of Karst and Cave it was made public that the Margitliget cavity has the cave cadastral number 4820/30.

In the national cave list of the book *Caves of Hungary*, which first appeared in 1984, the cave Margitligeti-üreg is listed among the caves of the Pilis Mountains with the name variation Negyedhármas-cave. Related to 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. The guidebook published in 1991 repeats the general description of the Oszoly caves from the 1974 guidebook. In the 1991 compilation written by József Kárpát it is mentioned that the Negyedhármas-cave (Csobánka) is 5 m long and 1 m deep. The 1996 cave‑day tour guide repeats the description found in the 1991 guidebook, which generally presents the Oszoly caves.