The Unicorn Cave (german: Einhornhöhle) in Austria is situated in the Hohe Wand Nature Park near

Dreistetten Markt Piesting is a municipality in the district of Wiener Neustadt-Land in the Austrian state of Lower Austria Lower Austria (german: Niederösterreich; Austro-Bavarian: ''Niedaöstareich'', ''Niedaestareich'') is one of the nine states of Austr ...

Lower Austria Lower Austria (german: Niederösterreich; Austro-Bavarian: ''Niedaöstareich'', ''Niedaestareich'') is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Since 1986, the capital of Lower Austria has been Sankt P ...

and may be reached on signposted hiking trails in ca. 20 minutes from Dreistetten (typical signpost illustrated). The cave was discovered in 1927 by Otto Langer senior and opened as a show cave in 1930. In 1964 the structures built by Otto Langer junior were modernised. Guided tours that take about 20 minutes are laid on from Easter to the end of September on Sundays and public holidays.

Overview

The guided tour leads first along an artificially-created gallery into the cave. Its natural entrance is located above the current man-made entrance and is visible from the present-day pathway. A hut has been built in front of the artificial gallery through which the gallery entrance is accessed. Inside the cave the tour leads initially down a side tunnel and then along the main corridor to the first squeeze. In the hall in front of this constriction, the largest dripstones of the guided tour are to be found -

stalagmite A stalagmite (, ; from the Greek , from , "dropping, trickling") is a type of rock formation that rises from the floor of a cave due to the accumulation of material deposited on the floor from ceiling drippings. Stalagmites are typicall ...

s about 1 metre high (see illustration). From the fork in the two passageways to this hall the tour follows a passage in which a

calc-sinter Calcareous sinter is a freshwater calcium carbonate deposit, also known as calc-sinter. Deposits are characterised by low porosity and well-developed lamination, often forming crusts or sedimentary rock layers. Calcareous sinter should not be con ...

curtain and several

stalactite A stalactite (, ; from the Greek 'stalaktos' ('dripping') via ''stalassein'' ('to drip') is a mineral formation that hangs from the ceiling of caves, hot springs, or man-made structures such as bridges and mines. Any material that is soluble ...

s can be seen hanging from the roof. In a niche to the side with a statue of St. Barbara there is also Perlsinter. Numerous animal bones were found in the cave (for example of a

cave bear The cave bear (''Ursus spelaeus'') is a prehistoric species of bear that lived in Europe and Asia during the Pleistocene and became extinct about 24,000 years ago during the Last Glacial Maximum. Both the word "cave" and the scientific name ...

), several exhibits are displayed in the cave itself or are visible in the layers of rock (for example individual teeth or bones).

Gallery

File:Einhornhoehle4.JPG, Signpost en route to the cave File:Einhornhoehle2.JPG, Stalactites File:Einhornhoehle3.JPG, Stalagmites in the Zwergenreich {{Authority control Show caves in Austria Caves of Austria Gutenstein Alps Landforms of Lower Austria Tourist attractions in Lower Austria