Rosenmüllerhöhle

Rosenmüller Cave


Useful Information

Rosenmüller cave, lighted by candles.
Location: 1,5 km north of Muggendorf, halfway towards Albertshof. From the road Muggendorf-Albertshof a trail starts to the Koppenburg, marked with a blue ring, which leads to the cave.
Open: guided tours after appointment
Fee:
Classification: SpeleologyKarst cave
Light: candles can be placed in candle holders at the railing
Dimension: L=50 m, VR=12 m.
Guided tours: L=100 m.
Photography: allowed
Accessibility: not wheelchair accessible, mainy steps
Bibliography:
Address: Touristinformation Muggendorf, Forchheimer Str. 8, 91346 Wiesenttal, Tel: +49-9196-929931, Fax: +49-9196-929930. E-mail: contact
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then.
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History

1771 first exploration by Johann Friedrich Esper.
1774 Johann Friedrich Esper publishes a book about the caves of the area around Muggendorfer.
18-OCT-1793 discovery of two flowstone-covered skeletons by Christian Rosenmüller from Jena, Johann Georg Wunder, and his son.
1830 construction of a tunnel at the lowest point of the cave, installation of paths and stairs.
1920 survey by A. Neischl and J. Reger.

Description

Die sogenannte Wachskammer in der Rosenmüllershöhle. Historic engraving.
the staircase with the candles in in old engraving.

The Rosenmüllerhöhle (Rosenmüller's Cave) consists more or less of a single huge chamber. The cave floor is very steep, with stairs and railings constructed in 1920. At the railings candle holders are affixed, one per metre. When the cave is lighted using this candles, the result is ver impressive.

Rosenmüller's Cave was known to the inhabitants of Muggendorf for a very long time, although under another name. There is a legend that the church administration hid their treasures during the Thirty Years War in the cave. If this really happened is not known, there are no documents about this.

When Johann Friedrich Esper started to publish about the local caves, the scientific and later touristic interest in caves grew. Finally on 18-OCT-1793 the first known exploration of the cave took place. Members of the expedition were Christian Rosenmüller from Jena, after whom the cave was named later, and the local cave guide Johann Georg Wunder with his son. The natural entrance of the cave is a vertical shaft at the edge of the valley. The explorers had to bind together rope ladders to be able to climb down the 16m to the ground.

They discovered two human skeletons on top of the debris at the foot of the pit. It was easy to see how they got there. But it was not possible to find out if they were the victims of a crime, an accident or if they were buried in the pit.


Rosenmüllerhöhle Gallery