Because of their extraordinary significance for the world's
natural heritage, in 1986 the Škocjanske jame were included in UNESCO's
World Heritage List. The Republic of Slovenia pledged to ensure the protection
of the Škocjanske jame area and therefore adopted the Škocjanske jame Regional
Park Act. The Park is managed by the Park Škocjanske jame Public Service
Agency, located in Škocjan 2, Slovenia.
The Škocjanske jame Regional Park is situated in the south-western part
of Slovenia, in the region called Kras, or Karst. Kras is the area where
researchers first began discovering typical karst formations, karst caves
and other karst features, and is therefore also referred to as the original
or classical Karst. The internationally accepted term used in karstology
for a steep-sided and flat-floored depression -- doline or dolina - owes
its origins precisely to the dolines in the Škocjan area (Velika and Mala
dolina), where the Reka river disappears underground for the last time.
The Škocjanske jame Regional Park, which is situated in the Divača
municipality, extends over an area of 413 hectares and encompasses the
area of the caves, the surface above the caves, the system of collapsed
dolines and the Reka river gorge to the bridge in Škoflje. The boundary
of the Park runs along the Kozina-Divača highway on the west, embraces
part of the Divača Kras on the north, and in the south-eastern direction
extends to the foothills of the flysch hills of Brkini. The passage of
a river from flysch to limestone is called contact karst, and the Škocjanske
jame caves which are located in such a passage, are a unique example of
this karst feature.
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The Park embraces the characteristic and unique karst landscape combining
a great number of karst features in one place. Together with the system
of caves, collapsed dolines and individual cultural monuments, the Park
makes up a typical karst "architecture". The unusual climatic conditions
in the dolines and at the cave entrances account for the blended presence
of both Alpine and Mediterranean flora. The unique concentration of plant
and animal species cohabiting in such an extremely small space gives this
area a significant value in terms of biotic diversity. The employees of
the Park, in collaboration with local inhabitants, pay great attention
to the protection of the natural ecosystems and archaeological sites, to
the restoration of architectural heritage, and to sustainable management.
The Škocjanske jame caves
have an extremely complex system of cave passages
in a total length of 5.8 km. The difference between the lowest and the
highest point in the caves is 209 meters. The caves are the biggest and
best known natural phenomenon within the classical Karst area. With the
shifting of sink holes in the geological past, numerous collapsed dolines
have formed at the contact point where flysch meets limestone under the
caverns. With their depth of 163 meters, Velika dolina and Mala dolina
charm every visitor. The finest view of both dolines with the natural bridge
and the cave that separates them is from an observation point. The caves,
with an immense underground gorge and halls, are the beginning of the Škocjan
underground system. The height of the gorge exceeds 100 meters at several
points. The caves probably have the biggest cave hall in Europe, measuring
12,000 square meters (1.2 hectares) in cross section. The Reka river runs
underground for almost 40 kilometres, to the sources of the Timav in the
Gulf of Trieste.
Within the Park's protected area, there are three smaller villages featuring
typical karst architecture: Škocjan, Betanja, and Matavun. The entire village
of Škocjan is especially interesting. It was once a fort, and with its
square and church of Sv. Kancijan (St. Canzian), after which the caves
were named, it is considered a "settlement monument". There are several
archaeological sites in the territory of the Park from various archaeological
periods, including settlements, burial grounds and cave sites. Because
of their special value they are included in the regime for the protection
of cultural heritage. Stone houses with stone wells, portals, barns for
wheat threshing and storage, water mills, ice pits, and the cemetery with
old tombstones form the life and cultural circle of the local population.
Visitors are invited to enjoy the beauties of Kras in our Park as fully
as possible and to help preserve local natural and cultural values -- not
only for all of us but also for future generations. |
