REMARKABLE TIDINGS from the day of St. Peter and St. Paul in the year 35!
Twenty-five citizens of the town of Amberg set off to a mountainous area three
miles distant from Amberg. Near the village of Predenwind they went into a
huge hollow mountain, about 900 Klafter [1700 m] deep, and walked through to
the other side. The marvels they saw there have been written down by Berthold
Buchner. The ignorant will not believe this story, the experienced ones will not
think it possible. But we have seen it with our own eyes, and it is the truth. - 1535


In the evening on the day of St. Peter and St. Paul the abovementioned 25 men set off from
Amberg with a cart with ladders, materials for making fire, stone-breaking tools, ropes, wine, bread,
and other items useful for such an undertaking. They went to the market place of Hohenburg and
stayed overnight. Next day they started very early and at 5 am they met at the entrance of the huge
mountain, and debated. Two of us were appointed leaders to whom we others promised obedience,
etc. Then we got ready to go into the hole which is so wide that one could turn a wagon of hay in it.
Each of us had to carry something: a piece of rope, a light, lantems, pickaxe, wine, bread, etc. And
we sang cheerfully 'We are travelling in the name of God!'
One of the leaders went in first, the other leader brought up the rear. He secured the entrance
with rope and marked it with signs to avert danger, because if we should lose track of the ropes it would
have been impossible for us to get out again. After fastening the ropes to a rock we descended 500
Klafter [950 m] deep. Four honest strong men were selected to keep watch at the mouth of the
mountain cave. Very soon we arrived at a very narrow cleft. One of our companions, a goldsmith,
who at home had desired to be the first one in the cave, was so frightened by the sight of it that he
deserted us notwithstanding his promise. But we crept on our stomachs some fifty Klafter [95 m]
through this narrow cleft. There was a wider opening next to it but it did not stretch very far. First
of all we came upon a wide space like a hall for dancing. When we crept in we found so many bones
that the first of us had to pile them up in one place to make room for us to enter. The bones were very
large as if from giants.
We then reached a very narrow hole and had to squeeze through on our stomachs. At 200
Klafter [380 m] one comes into what seems like a beautiful spacious palace big enough to hold about
100 horses. It is lined at the top very handsomely with 'grown' stones [speleothems]. There are eight
or ten 'grown' pillars and good seats at the sides. Here we found two skulls which to our surprise were
enclosed by the rock, we could hardly hack them out with our tools. Each person took a piece, one
the cranium, one the teeth, etc. There were many passages here and everywhere in the mountain;
some of them we explored. All the caves and passages were full of big bones. We searched for about
an hour for a hole leading further in. At last our leader found one and we all followed him. The other
tunnels met now and then in the mountain. We were still amazed by the sight of this palace.
After 150 Klafters [285 m] we came across a very narrow cave and we had difficulty in
squeezing in. There we heard a strange roaring, crackling and rustling, and more than one of us
wished he had stayed at home with his wife. Suddenly the cave widened so that we could walk side
by side. We took counsel and decided to go on and find oat what these wild sounds were. Our leader
went in front again, we following. We arrived at another wide space which we examined carefully.
It looked like a chapterhouse, with pews on one wall and a gallery overhead. It was difficult to get
up there and I stayed down below. In all the caves we found many bones. We came to a narrow vault
where we found a skull bigger than we had ever seen before. When we tried to squeeze it through
the narrow opening it crumbled like ashes. Through a narrow entrance we got down further, about
200 Klafter [380 m] . There was more and more roaring and rustling till we came upon a fairly wide
opening where an enormous waterfall was rushing down between two rocks with such a force it would
have been sufficient to turn two mill wheels. The stream ran downwards over the opening. we were
curious to know where this stream came from or find its spring, as it was so icy cold, but we could
not follow it. Our leader got stuck there in a cave; he had to be pulled out otherwise he would have
died. The same happened to me, and I felt very weak afterwards and the apothecary gave me a
restorative.
Adjoining this wide cave was a handsome triangular vault. There we found a stone sculpture.
It resembled a deity seated on a throne with a straw wreath on its head. The straw was black and very
brittle. I and some others took some straw home.
We found another stone sculpture hanging from a high wall. We left a light bunting in front
of it. At 200 Klafter [380 m] we found loose soil with a great many bones.
We crept and walked on following the rope, and at 250 Klafter [475 m] we came to a most
wonderful palace and tabernacle. On the other side, between the south and west point, we found a
fountain with four stone ,pillars round it, and there seem to have been seats there at one time. The
fountain was very cold. We hung our winebottles in it and the wine was soon cooled.
While we refreshed ourselves at the fountain we heard a loud noise in the cliff where the stream
ends. Our leader was bold enough to climb in but got stuck and became drenched. When we came
to his rescue with fights, one of us, called Burckstaller, was struck on the head, it could have damaged
one eye. We thought a female figure had been the thrower. Burckstaller was very superstitious, so
perhaps it was a ghost. We did not see anything else.
It was very strange that the dripping water, which falls into this mountain in 60 places, freezes
into a very hard even rock and into translucid stone. From some caves white salt-like stuff trickles
out, it looks like glass and we took it to be saltpetre. In a cliff of the rock one of our companions found
a strong grey curly hair which he assumed was from a beard. All of us were curious to fred out more
about the 'ghost' and would have faced further adventures and dangers. But we lost the passages and
caves where we saw the' ghost' and were forced to climb to the surface with the rope and soon reached
daylight again. Just then a cuirasslet with two horses passed the entrance of the cave and we called
to him to come in. But on seeing us he rode away hurriedly. We all looked discoloured and were
terrified at each other' s appearance. We looked like corpses and startled the guards at the entrance.
But thanks to God, nobody was hurt. Praise be to God now and for ever. Amen.
This has been written down by Berthold Buchner, who took part, and is attested by the Treasurer
of Areberg.

 "On the southern Frankenalb in Bavaria there is an unusual cave, around which it became very quiet since the Second World War. It is situated in the midst of the troop exercise area high rock and is almost not not accessible therefore" "Only at very rare opportunities that could be done, z:B. on the occasion of the federation conference of the Germans excavate and Karstfor into Velburg 1976." I found this story in History of Cave Science; The Exploration and Study of Limestone Caves, to 1900 by Trevor R. Shaw, Second Edition Published by the Sydney Speleological Society, 1992. The call letters, here in the University of Arizona Library are: "GB 601 A4 S54 1992 Science" (Science Library) It is interesting that this cave appears to be almost "off limits" in a military training area.....