Gruta do Centenário ( English: ''Centenary grotto'') (MG-1081), is a cave located in the municipality of Mariana, in the state of

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil, being the fourth largest state by area and the second largest in number of inhabitants with a population of 20,539,989 according to the 2022 Brazilian census, 2022 census. Located in ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. It is the largest and deepest quartzite cave in the world, and second in the country in terms of unevenness. Other caves which are part of the same system have now been partially explored.

History

The beginnings of the Brazilian

speleology Speleology () is the scientific study of caves and other karst features, as well as their chemical composition, composition, structure, physical property, physical properties, history, ecology, and the processes by which they form (speleogenes ...

in the eighteenth and nineteenth century mingle with the history of Caraça. From 1818 reports of two European naturalists,

Johann Baptist von Spix Johann Baptist Ritter von Spix (9 February 1781 – 13 March 1826) was a German natural history, biologist. From his expedition to Brazil, he brought to Germany a large variety of specimens of plants, insects, mammals, birds, amphibians and fish. ...

and

Carl Friedrich Philipp von Martius Carl Friedrich Philipp (Karl Friedrich Philipp) von Martius (17 April 1794 – 13 December 1868) was a German botany, botanist and explorer. Between 1817 and 1820, he travelled 10,000 km through Brazil while collecting botanical specimens. His m ...

, cited the existence of several caves in the Serra do Caraça. About this place, it is said that in 1922 the priests of the Caraça College had discovered at the Inficionado peak, which stands above sea level, the Centenary grotto whose first speleological data appeared for the first time only in 1952 when a more technical survey took place resulting in a 3,790 horizontal projection (4,700 linear meters) and a vertical drop of with several entrances, almost always in the form of pits. Six more caves have been explored: ''Centenário II'', with 20 meters of horizontal projection, ''Centenário III'', formed by two parallel galleries connected by a narrow duct, ''Centum'', ''Bloco Suspenso'', which presents small depths of up to 20 meters, ''Fumaça'' and ''Bocaina'' with 960 meters of horizontal projection (1,200 linear meters) and 304 meters of unevenness. The altitude of these cave mouths range from 2,051 meters at the top slot, 1,958 meters at the usual entrance to the cave to 1,881 meters at the Inficionado abyss. So far three streams have been identified, the Inficionado stream, Chantilly and Areião. All ducts are narrow, ranging between 30 cm and 10 meters for passages that usually lead to the galleries. Their height goes up to tens of meters, although in just a few the ceiling can be seen.

References

External links

Base de Dados do Ministerio do Meio Hambiente
Governo Federal - ICMBIO Official Website Caves of Minas Gerais Quartzite caves Wild caves Sinkholes of South America {{Caving-stub

History

See also

References

External links