Quarries near Kaluga - man-made dungeons in the Kaluga region , mainly located in the narrowed section of the Oka River valley between Kaluga and the city of Aleksin in the neighboring Tula region , so-called "Kaluga-Aleksinsky canyon" with a length of approximately 50 kilometers [1] .
Content
Core Systems
They include the Karavain caves and Koltsov or Lubovets caves / quarries - a set of artificial stone caves in the Ferzik region , formed by limestone excavations. The Karavain quarries are located 20 kilometers downstream of the Oka from the city of Kaluga , near a village called Karavainki. Near the Karavainok there is a separate system, called both Lyubovetskaya and Koltsovskaya, since the entrances to it are located in the tract (ravine) called Lyubovets on the left bank of the Oka River, near the village of Koltsova .
Quarries in the vicinity of the city of Tarusa are less known, especially since they are located on the banks of the Oka River, opposite the city, closer to the village of Velegozh (the tract "Ulai Mountain"), and now belong to the modern Tula region [2] [3] .
Description of the investigated part
The near part of Koltsovsky caves, which has a quite decent length of passages - over 800 meters, is well studied. Having penetrated into the "Central entrance" and passing through the corridor, the caver finds himself in a small but cozy hall of the "Hata Khan". In the center of it are three stone pillars, traces of tools of masons are visible on the walls, and nodules of crystalline gypsum glisten in horizontal layers of black clay. Today, these crystals serve as souvenirs, and once their thin plates, the so-called “Maryins of glass”, were inserted into the window frames instead of the usual glass that was expensive in those days [4] .
Historical Review
The latest developments confidently date back to the 19th century [4] .
Local residents have kept information about the original method of loading the stone mined here, which went to the construction of white stone Moscow and other cities. Limestone blocks cut down deep in the earth were delivered to the surface by horses passing through high corridors. Then the stone was leveled and transferred from the work site to a wooden gutter laid all the way to the river. After that, water was let out of the pond, specially arranged on the shore, and on such a “grease” the stones easily glided to the barges standing at the pier [4] .
About the quarries near the city of Tarusa, located on the Oka River, but outside the Kaluga-Aleksinsky Canyon, it is also known that marble-like limestone was mined there in the 19th century [5] .
Legends
Among the cavers there are numerous legends and traditions that were in the system of Koltsovsky caves and the dungeons of the count Vorontsov allegedly living here. The count was engaged in witchcraft and warlocks, created for his needs a whole underground labyrinth, consisting of three or, as some say, of six underground tiers, in which he conducted his secret experiments [4] .
See also
- Guryevsky quarries (Tula region)
- Quarries near Moscow (Moscow region)
- Staritsky quarries (Tver region)
- Pyatnitsky caves (Oryol Oblast)
- Nolkin Stone (Mari El)
- Quarries near Ryazan
- Dungeons of Nizhny Novgorod
- Dungeons of the Samara region
Notes
- ↑ Central Federal District . cfo.gov.ru. Date of treatment August 16, 2018.
- ↑ Ulai caves on the Oka River near Tarusa and Velegozh . kalugafoto.net. Date of treatment August 16, 2018.
- ↑ Velegozh and Tarusu are connected by an underground passage through the Oka? (Russian) , MySlo (July 13, 2009). Date accessed August 18, 2018.
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 Koltsovsky caves . www.visit-kaluga.ru. Date of treatment July 13, 2018.
- ↑ TO SEARCH THE DUNGEONS OF TARUS . www.vest-news.ru. Date of treatment August 16, 2018.