Chil-Ustun

Chil-Ustun Cave (Kyrgyz: Чилустун үңкүрү) also known as Aravan Cave is located in the Southwest of Kyrgyzstan in the Osh Mountains, composed of Paleozoic limestones, in 3.5 km from Aravan, Kyrgyzstan.[1] The cave belongs to the group of Karst caves of outlier mountains to the west of Osh.[2][3]

Chil-Ustun Cave
Чилустун үңкүрү (in Kyrgyz)
Coordinates40°32′19″N 72°31′32″E
Length380 m
Elevation1100 m
DiscoveryAncient times
Entrances1
Show cave openedno
LightingNne
Chil-Ustun
LocationAravan District, Osh Region, Kyrgyzstan

The entrance to the cave forms a 15 meter tall and approximately 25 meter wide arc. The cave is 380 meters long [4] or up to 350 meters according to another source.[3] It is located in a rock formation at 1100 meters above sea level. The entrance is located on a steep, oblique rock face.

The cave's existence has been known since mediaeval times as attested by Arabic inscriptions on the walls.

The cave consists of 3 chambers of different sizes, connected with corridors and narrow openings. The largest chamber is 85 m X 40 m X 20 m in size.

Inside the cave, stalactites and stalagmites (columns) reach heights of over 50 meters. These forms vary in color, from white and cream to dark brown.

References
  1. "Чилустун үңкүрү" [Chilustun cave] (PDF). Кыргызстандын Географиясы [Geography of Kyrgyzstan] (in Kyrgyz). Bishkek. 2004. p. 319.
  2. Chikishev, Anatoliy Grigorevich (1973). Пещеры на территории СССР [Caves in the USSR]. Настоящее и будущее Земли и человечества (in Russian). Moscow: Academy of Sciences of the USSR: Nauka publisher. p. 85.
  3. Ошская область:Энциклопедия [Encyclopedia of Osh Oblast] (in Russian). Frunze: Chief Editorial Board of Kyrgyz Soviet Encyclopedia. 1987. p. 432.
  4. "Chil-Ustun Cave". Centralasia-adventures.com. 1990-01-01. Retrieved 2014-06-07.


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