Pešna
View of Cave Pešna's entrance
LocationMakedonski Brod, North Macedonia
Coordinates41°32′38″N 21°14′59″E / 41.54389°N 21.24972°E / 41.54389; 21.24972
DifficultyRelatively difficult
Access1
View from inside the cave

Pešna (Macedonian: Пешна) is a cave in North Macedonia which has been declared a Monument of Culture.[1]

Description

The cave Pešna is six kilometres (3.7 mi) away from Makedonski Brod. Speleologists say that Cave Pešna's entrance is the biggest cave entrance on the Balkans — the entrance is 40 metres (130 ft) high and 56 metres (184 ft) wide. The length of the cave is 124 metres (407 ft). It is home to swallows and bats. The New York Times compared the cave to Helms Deep from The Lord of the Rings, which speaks about the cave's beauty.[2]

After heavy rain and melting of snow, a spring, which completely dries up during droughts, erupts from the cave's northernmost part. According to local residents, the water plunges from the village of Krapa, which is located at a higher altitude,[2] and forms several lakes and waterfalls in North Macedonia's largest cave system, which is said to be ten kilometres (6.2 mi) long.

At the cave's entrance there is a medieval fortress and the remains of a mill. The remains of a fortress in the cave are linked to a region called Devini Kuli visible from inside the cave. According to local legends, both fortresses were homes of Prince Marko's sisters. Pešna is registered as a site from the late antique period in North Macedonia. A tomb dated from late antiquity (5th cent.)[3][4] with a brick vault was discovered in front of the cave's entrance.[2]

References

  1. ↑ "Национален регистар на објекти кои се заштитно културно наследство" [National register of buildings that are protected cultural heritage] (in Macedonian). Ministry of Culture. 2012. Archived from the original on August 9, 2021. Retrieved May 19, 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 Aleksandar Mateski, „Девини кули и Пешна“ [Devini Kuli and Pešna] (in Macedonian), Economy and Business, year 18, no. 210/211, December 2015/January 2016, pp. 136-137.
  3. ↑ Macedoniae acta archaeologica, Volumes 7-9, Arheološko društvo na SR Makedonija, 1981, str. 147.
  4. ↑ Živa Antika: Antiquité Vivante, Volumes 32-33; Univerzitet vo Skopje. Društvo za antički studii na SRM, 1982, str. 105.

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