Many Leica owners consider
a trip to Wetzlar, the Leica Mecca, a worthwhile
undertaking. Less than 50 miles from
Frankfurt, it is easy to get to. The
guided tours of the new Leica plant at Leitz Park are very informative and
offer a close look at how these cameras and lenses are made. Another highlight of visiting Leica is the
Leica museum.
About 15 miles from
Wetzlar is Weilburg. A side trip to
Weilburg is definitely worth consideration.
It is the location of the topic of this post. I recommend using a route that goes through
Braunfels, only a bit more than 2 miles from the former Leica headquarters in
Solms. There you’ll have the opportunity
to visit Burg Braunfels (Braunfels Castle) which dates back to 1246.
Burg Braunfels
The Marktplatz (market
square) in Weilburg
A part of Weilburg is
called Kubach, place of the Kubacher Kristallhöhle (Kubach Crystal Cave). The Kristallhöhle is a relatively new
discovery. The story goes that in 1881
miners looking for phosphorite stumbled by chance on an underground cave full
of stalactites and stalagmites that was so big, apparently the local church was
said to have fitted in it. But since
this was not the mineral they were looking for, the entrance was filled in and
the cave’s location forgotten.
However, not only did the
miners tell other local people and even the press about the cave, they
allegedly brought some of the stalactites back to the surface that are now in a
local museum.
Over the years the story
was passed on about the cave, until in 1973 holes were bored in the area that
it was believed to be located in. While
those boreholes did not find the cave being sought, it did find one with rare
crystals on the walls.
A container, small enough
to fit the borehole, had been equipped with a camera and flash to take
photographs of the newly discovered cave.
That camera was a Leica. It is
now on display, hanging from a line right below the borehole.
Container holding the
Leica
In the years that followed
a pathway down to the cave was excavated and since 1981 visitors have been able
to take tours. At the deepest point the
floor of the cave is 78m (256 feet) below ground, and this part of the cave is
30m (98.5 feet) high – the highest cave that is open to the public in Germany.
Main entrance with a number of large rocks
from the mineral museum inside
The tour takes about 45
minutes and afterwards visitors can also go in the museum above ground, which
shows more about how the cave was discovered but also about the mining that used
to take place in the area.
Going down into the cave
is an exciting experience, but it is not possible for everyone. Warning signs at the entrance list a range of
medical conditions which are prohibitive to making the descent. These include anyone who has had a heart
attack, suffers from angina pectoris, or is taking nitrous-based
medication. Sturdy shoes are also
recommended for the 347 steps down to the cave’s entrance.
From personal experience,
I know that it is not so much going down into the cave, but coming up
again. But I found it worthwhile, for
the cave itself and because it offers the opportunity to see a little known
item of Leica history.
The cave’s website is www.kubacherkristallhoehle.de
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Do you know what model Leica they used?
ReplyDeleteIf I recall correctly, they needed to use an older Leica III or IIIa because of their size. The other models were too large to fit the tube that was lowered to the cave.
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