Wildkirchli
Encyclopedia
Alpstein
The Alpstein are a subgroup of the Appenzell Alps in Switzerland. The Alpstein massif is in Appenzell Innerrhoden, Appenzell Ausserrhoden and St...
massif of Appenzell
Appenzell
Appenzell is a region and historical canton in the northeast of Switzerland, entirely surrounded by the Canton of St. Gallen....
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
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They are notable for the traces of paleolithic (Neanderthals) habitation discovered in 1940 by Emil Bächler (1868–1950), dating to ca. 50,000 to 30,000 BP. Even earlier are remnants of cave bear
Cave Bear
The cave bear was a species of bear that lived in Europe during the Pleistocene and became extinct at the beginning of the Last Glacial Maximum about 27,500 years ago....
s found in the caves, dating to ca. 90,000 BP. The hermit hut houses a large bear skeleton found in the caves on site.
The caves were inhabited by hermits from 1658 to 1853. The last hermit resident fell to his death on the mountain in the mid-1800s, and the hermitage remained vacant until it was renovated to a museum in 1972.
Today, the caves are a tourist site. They can be easily accessed on foot via a short trail down from the cable car station at Ebenalp
Ebenalp
The Ebenalp is the northernmost summit of the Appenzell Alps. The mountain is a popular hiking destination and has been accessible by cable car from Wasserauen since 1955. Ebenalp attracts up to 200,000 visitors each year....
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Literature
- E. Bächler, Das alpine Paläolithikum der Schweiz im W., Drachenloch und Wildenmannlisloch, 1940.
- E. Schmid, «Zum Besuch der Wildkirchli-Höhlen», in Mitteilungsblatt der Schweizerischen Geschichte für Ur- und Frühgeschichte 8, 1977, 2-12.