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PREFACE

All the syngenetic caves are non-karstic caves. The postgeneticcaves listed here are those caves, which have  been developed mainly  through rock fragmentation, weathering and wearing or corrasion. Corrosion,the acidic dissolution process, has  played only a subordinate part. This is a  simplified definition. We have to state that these cave forming processes are mainly effective in magmatic rocks orinhighly siliceous metamorphic and sedimentary rocks.

The list includes 1239 non-karstic caves, although there are a total of 1241 caves because some clusters of small caves  have been drawn together. We have listed al the caves  known upto  2015.  Some cave which are known to have existed,  have  been destroyed   and  these  have been specially noted. Furthermore, listed are caves of the border  regions of Austria and Slovakia, which belong to similar geomorphological and geological  formations.  Also included  in the list are artificial or artificially  widened  cavities,  which are considered as caves by the local population.These include  abandoned mine  workings,  rock shelters, former  hermitages, underground commercial  premises whichare several  hundred years old, rock-chapels  and other cavities used  for religious purposes   throughout  history. However, the list does not include cellars, former cave-dwellings  in built up areas, basements, former military bunkers, industrial objects or air-raid  shelters.

The majority of the non-karstic caves in Hungary (881 caves) developed in igneous rocks, in andesite, basalt,  rhyolite and  in their tuffaceous formations as well as in granite porphyry. Some 274 caves are  known in sedimentary  rocks, mainly in sandstones and conglomerate  and 84 caves are formed in  metamorphic rocks, in calcareous phillite and in green schist.

The caves have been formed in various ways. Between the syngenetic caves in the magmatic rocks, gas bubbles occurred, forming crystal caves, which have been opened by mine workings. Also in magmatic rocks holes formed by alkaline solution can be found, as well as fumarole cavities, hollows resulting from steam explosions, holes formed by weathering  between the basaltic colums and natural bridges. In the magmatic, sedimentary  and metamorphic rock formations tectonic fracture caves frequently appear, collapse labyrinths, atectonic and consequence caves. Erosion niches,  rock shelters, and small tunnels are formed mainly in tuffaceous formations, sandstones and loess.

During the deposition of the calc-tufas, characteristic syngenetic caves formed concurrently. Corridors, tunnels and chambers  and other artificial holes were frequently  mined and  enlarged  in volcanic  tuffs and sandstones but rarely  in other rock formations.

In some non-karstic caves Neolithic, Bronze Ageand.  Iron Agearcheological remains were discovered, e.g. at Nagy-barlang  in Legyesbénye and Pokol-lik in Kapolcs.  The first  written reference  to  a non-karstic cave dates from 1295 (Likas-kő  in Lovasberény). In 1869  the geologist József  Szabó led the first  expedition to the Mátra  Mountains in order to explore  the Csörgő-lyuk. It was many years later  in the 1930’s  that  some researchers again investigated non-karstic caves. In the 1950’s and  1960’s  exploration was further revived in these caves.

Organised research beganin1983 with the launch of  the Volcanspeleological Collective.Their comprehensive activity is still ongoing. The organisation, led  by István  Eszterhás, consists of a nucleus  of  15 persons, who are occasionally joined  by several  more  cavers. They have listed and  surveyed 1240 non-karstic caves. In 40 caves they dug and  discovered nearly 1000 m of new  cave passages. They studied the development  of the non-karstic  caves, and they determined new types of cave development  (consequence caves, holes  formed by alkaline solution, fumarole  cavities).

They have found, and  described,  some speleothems  previously unknown in Hungary, such  as silicat stalactites and   isingerit discs. They have solved  the problem of ice development  in  low elevation basalt caves.They  have classified 200 species of  animals and 18 speciesof fungii  (some of   them are unusual) which are  to be found in the caves. The results have been summarized in 7 separate volumes and in 188 articles mainly in Hungarian, but  occasionally in German or in English.    

The following is a short  list of  the longest non-karstic caves in Hungary:

1. Csörgő Hole (rhyodacit tuff) Mátra Mountains  428/-30 m

2. Anna Calc-tufa Cave,partly  man-made (calc-tufa) Bükk Mountains  600/ ±18m

3. Várhegyi  Calc-tufa  Cave, partly man-made  (calc-tufa) Budai Mountains  3300/±15m  (3. according to the appr. length of the natural part)                             

4. Papp Ferenc Cave,partly karstic (sandstone,  conglomerate,  limestone)  PilisMountains  335/-66m

5. Tettyei calc-tufa  Cave, partly  man-made (calc-tufa) Mecsek Mountains  218/+2 m

6. Szabó József Cave,  partly karstic (sandstone, marl) Pilis Mountains  200/-25 m

7. Pulai Basalt Cave(basalt) Bakony Mountains  151/-22 m

8. Csák-kői Big  Cave, partly man-made (rhyolite )  Mátra  Mountains  133/+14 m

9. Soltészkerti  Calc-tufa Cave, partly man-made  (calc-tufa) Bükk Region  115/+2m

10. Betyár Cave  (calcareous sandstone) Mátra Mountains 87/±7m

11. Kő-hegyi Cave (calc-tufa)   Gerecse  Mountains 85/±12 m

12. Halász Árpád Cave, partly man-made (basalt)  Bakony  Mountains  72/-6m

13. Disznós-árki-Cave (andezite agglomerate)  Visegrádi  Mountains  70/-13 m

14. Szilvás-kői  Cave (basalt) Medves-Ajnácskői  Mountains  65/-13 m

15. Sas-kövi Cave (andesite tuff) Visegrádi Mountains  63/-10m

16. "Táncterem"- Lepkés Passage (andesite  agglomerate)  BükkRegion  58/-6 m

17. Sárkánytorok Cave (basalt) Medves - Ajnácskői Mountains  51/-16 m

18. Pokol Hole (basalt)  Bakony Mountains  51/+4 m

19. Vasas Chasm NoI.Cave (andesite agglomerate) Visegrádi Mountains  50/-19m

20. Széchy Dénes Cave (limestone and sandstone) Esztergom  50 /±10 m

21. Arany Cave (rhyolite  tuff ) Tokaj -Eperjesi  Mountain Chain  50/+3 m

22. Rózsa Sándor Cave (andesite) Tokaj -Eperjesi Mountain Chain  46/-14m

The digital development of the Non-karstic Cave Registry was carried out using Arcview GIS  with the available digital map material. .Digital  maps with different scales have been developed for the specific regions as project files (apr). The number of map pages for a region depends  on  the number and distribution of caves.

The cave entrances have been marked on the maps  on a separate  layer (shp file). Originally the caves were recorded  in survey books, topographic  maps, and  in notes following many years of  research  and exploration.

Arcview determines  the eov_x and eov_y  coordinates (eov= uniform national projection)  of cave entrances in shp file format. The  z coordinate, or the elevation of  the cave entrances (a.s.l.) can  be read  from the contour lines of the  base  maps or on the base of GPS measurements.

The maps were drawn  using color, and different line  thickness etc. The most important item  was the indication of the cave entrances and cave  names. .The  maps were exported in jpg file  format.   This enables  further utilization and handling.

From the twenty-one regions the caves of 16 regions can be drawn in more  then one map page. Therefore the preparation of regional  index maps was  necessary. These maps show  the exact location of  the map  pages with  the cave entrances indicated.

The Index Map of  Hungary shows the 21  locations of the regions with non-karstic caves and  a table of  the regions has been prepared, too..  

The. Index Map of  Hungary  and  the Regional  Index maps  were converted to jpg  file format, as were the deatailed maps, the advantage  being that jpg format is also similar.

The dbf database, which  was compiled automatically  from the  shp files was filled with  cave data.  This included: identification  nnumber, name and length of  the cave, special notes  (artificial, collapsed etc.) and the enclosing  rock. The eov_x and  eov_y coordinates of the cave entrances (eov= uniform national  projection) were enterd as numeric fields in the data base.

 In order to present regional datasheets, the dbf database  was copied in and xls (MsExcell) file  formats and the data is sorted in alphabetic order in some cases the z coordinate is  indicated .  Where Regional Index  Maps exist this data is also sorted  according  to the indicated map pages of the Index Map.

The cave surveys and  photographs were  saved in gif and jpg file format. The cave descriptions  were written in txt format.

The digital data in the non-karstic cave list, such as detailed maps and the  index maps, the cave  surveys and the photographs the data sheets and the descriptions allows the transfer and presentation of the  cave list.

The Home Page of the  cave list summarises the non-karstic caves in Hungary.

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