The discovery of the Castellana Caves
Ancient legends and pioneering explorations
THE DEEP CHASM
For centuries, the entrance to the Grave– the large chasm that marks the entrance to the Castellana Caves – has evoked fear and anxiety. People crossing the nearby country road, especially at dusk, reported seeing mysterious vapours rising from the abyss, mingled with the swift flight of bats. According to popular belief, these mists were nothing but the souls of suicides, condemned to wander in the darkness of the cave and to try vainly to climb back up to the sky.
These stories, passed down through the generations, served to reinforce the Grave's reputation as a forbidden and inaccessible place, shrouded in mystery and superstition.
Yet, even in modern times, there were men willing to face that darkness. Vincenzo Longo (1737–1825), a humanist and jurist originally from Castellana, is remembered as one of the first to venture into the Grave, accompanied by a group of peers driven by the desire to know and discover what was hidden deep within the earth.
Memories of exploration: the first documented descent into the Grave The memory of the first descent into the Grave – a daring and fascinating undertaking – has been preserved for generations, and passed down through stories and accounts that have been embellished over time. A written testimony confirming the historicity of the event, appears in the seventh volume of the “Dizionario corografico-universale dell'Italia”, published in Milan in 1852. The text reads: "A little more than a mile west of Castellana there is a natural curiosity, a chasm commonly called the Grave. Its mouth has a circumference of about 180 palms and is about 300 palms deep. In the last century, some intrepid citizens of Castellana descended into it early in the morning, using hawsers and ropes. They travelled several miles through dark, underground regions, and did not emerge until around midnight, much to the relief of their waiting relatives and friends." (F. De Luca – R. Mastriani, “Castellana”, in Dizionario corografico del Reame di Napoli, Milan, 24) This valuable source not only bears witness to the keen interest in this extraordinary natural phenomenon, but also portrays a curious and courageous community deeply rooted in its territory, and willing to confront the unknown in the name of discovery.
Before the discovery
FOLK TALES
Besides living in the folk tales and in oral tradition, the Grave of the Castellana Caves is not only remembered in folk tales and oral traditions but also in official historical documents,which are now preserved at the Historical Archives of the Municipality of Castellana-GrotteThe historian Donato Mastromarino from Castellana brought these precious testimonies to light Donato Mastromarino,and reconstructed some of the first documented interventions related to the sinkhole.
One document that stands out is the deed of December 21, 1800, which recounts the descent into the Grave to recovery of some bodies. On that day, the State Inquisitor Francesco Maria Trevisani ordered, in the name of the king, the administrators of the “magnificent University of Castellana” to cover the costs of the operation, which was carried out in extreme conditions.
The next day, the records show the payment of twenty coins to Bartolomeo Simone of Polignano, for being the first to descend into the Grave and Thomas Francesco Barlettae Joseph Domenico Cafuoriof Castellana who descended later. These names represent theearliest documented evidence of people descending into the Grave, and mark an important moment in the humanity interaction with the mysterious underground world.
A second historical document, dated June 19, 1847, confirms that the Grave of Castellana cave system was already a well-known and feared place and the subject of extraordinary operations. On that occasion, the Superintendent of the Province authorised the mayor of Castellana to allocate the necessary funds for a new recovery operation.
The document states: "This royal judge reports to me that he has spent several days searching the vast Grave of Castellana Caves quarryGrave for the body of Giuseppe Macchia, and requests eighteen ducats to cover the cost of extracting it from the quarry using a machine that must be brought specially from Monopoli."(V. Manghisi – P. Pace,The Castellana-Grotte Grave: Between History and Legendin Stone Humanism – Reflections(Martina Franca, July 2007)
This episode is accurately reported in official documents and cited by the scholars Vincenzo Manghisi e Pino PaceIt testifies not only to the technical difficulty of speleological operations at the time, but also to the deep perception that the community had of the Grave: a remote and dangerous place, capable of generating fear and mystery, but also the subject of attention to the civil authorities.
The discovery
THE INTERVENTION OF AN EXPERT SPELEOLOGIST
In 1938, theProvincial Tourism Board of Bari, requested the intervention of an expert speleologist from the Italian Speleological Institute of Postojna to carry out an inspection of some caves already known in the area. The aim was to evaluate their potential for development as tourism attractions.
On 23 January 1938, Franco Anelli, a young and promising speleologist, arrived in Castellana to carry out the first surveys. After inspecting poorly developed cavities that were not suitable, Anelli found himself on the edge of the Grave: the vast entrance chasm that had fuelled popular legends and fears for centuries
Determined to descend , he reached the bottom of the cavity and explored the area around it. He found a low passage, which extended for a few dozen meters and led to a second vast cave. It was so large that not even the light of his acetylene lamp could illuminate it completely. This place, which would later become known as the Cave of Monuments, was the first part of a discovery that would change the history of the site forever
Once back on the surface, Anelli immediately communicated the news of the extraordinary discovery and planned to return two days later, to continue the explorations. From that moment, one of the most important speleological adventures of the twentieth century began, destined to bring to light one of the most fascinating karst complexes in Europe.
On 25 January 1938, two days after his first descent into the Grave, the speleologistFranco Anelli returned to Castellana to continue his explorations, this time accompanied by Vito Matarrese, a brave worker from Castellana. Together they advanced for about 300 meters into the underground system, reaching the end of a short descending tunnel – now known as the Serpent Corridor– where they came to a deep well which marked the temporary end of the journey. Explorations resumed in March of the same year, when Anelli and Matarrese managed to advance 600 metres from the Grave. They encountered a new large chasm in the currentDesert Corridor, which forced a new interruption. During this period, Anelli also produced the first official survey of the Caves, which was completed inSeptember 1938, during his third visit in Castellana. Following Anelli's departure, Vito Matarrese continued the explorations alone.He crossed the chasm of the Desert Corridor and, in 1939, reached the White Cave which is still considered the most spectacular and deepest point of the karst complex.
"The Castellana Caves returned Postojna to Italy."
(F. Anelli, in The car(Rome, 18 September 1949)
Insights
The caves
Curiosity
The origin
Photo and video