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THE MOUNTAINOUS part of Southern Spiš is home to one of Slovakia's natural wonders - the Dobšinská ice cave. The only one of its kind in Europe outside of an alpine area, the ice cave is one of the largest in the world. In some places, its ice layers measure almost 25 metres thick.
While the Dobšinská ice cave dates back millions of years, it was only in 1870 that man first set foot in it. Mining engineer Eugen Ruffíny from the nearby town of Dobšiná made the discovery.
The cave is not in its natural state. In 1887, the Dobšinská Ice Cave was the first cave in Europe to have electric lighting.
As we can see from this postcard, the cave was a popular place to ice skate in the summer. In the 1950s, top Czechoslovak figure skaters trained here, including the legendary Karol Divín.
