Minas Gerais Grottoes and Caves

More than 500 grottoes and caves have been catalogued in the towns of Minas Gerais. Formed by the action of the water on the limestone rock, only three, Lapinha, Maquiné and Rei do Mato are open to the public. The others are reserved to scientists only.

The Lapinha grotto is in the town of the Lagoa Santa and is thought to have been formed about 900 million years ago. Fossils have been found there, such as the skull of Lagoa Santa Man who is said to have lived in the region 10,000 years ago, as well as fossils of prehistoric animals such as the sabre-toothed tiger and the giant sloth. Five hundred and eleven metres long and forty metres deep, the Lapinha grotto has sixteen fantastic chambers. In Cathedral Hall, images can be seen in the form of saints, pulpits and niches. There is also the Room of the Pyramids and the Bride's Gallery, with formations reminiscent of a bride's veil and a wedding cake.

The Maquiné Grotto is in the town of Cordisburgo, 130 kilometres from Belo Horizonte where the writer João Guimarães Rosa was born. It is 650 metres long, of which 440 metres are open to the public. The stalactites form spectacular figures whilst the Fairies' Gallery is special in its delicacy with brilliant "crystals" forming fringes, garlands and chandeliers. The Maquiné grotto is the biggest in Minas Gerais and in it were found stones, piles of human bones and remains of prehistoric animals.

The Rei do Mato Grotto is in the town of Sete Lagoas 62 kilometres from Belo Horizonte. It is 998 metres long of which only 220 metres are open to the public. It has stalactites, stalagmites and stone waterfalls with the brilliance of crystal. The Rei do Mato is another grotto regarded as "living" by the scientists because the action of the water continues the process of formation. In one of the chambers there is a hanging lake called Poço dos Desejos (Well of Desires). The Hall of Rarities is so-called because it houses identical parallel columns formed of calcite crystals with a diameter of 30 centimetres and more than 20 metres high. Up to now, formations of that type were found only in the Altamira Caves in Spain.