GUPTADHAM
24.756700,83.808300
Description
Not seen: OLDHAM, C E A W (1922). Guptadham (note 1) is solitary sacred cave (temple cave) dedicated to Shiva, complete with fabulous tunnels (note 2), in karstologically unfavourite limestone (thin bedded and impure, partly arenaceous and partly argillaceous and spoiled with marly laminar interbeds. Indicated as »Guptadham Cave« both on the Survey of India sheet 63-P (edition 1985) and in the south-western corner of sheet 63-P/13 (edition 1975) but apparently as »Suggi Kho« (GLENNIE, E A 1969: 109) and »Suggi Khoh« (TURK, F A 1947: 71) on earlier editions (One Inch series, 1914, 1918). SITUATION: The cave lies at the foot of the eastern flank of the Chunda (also: Goptha, Gupta, Gupteswar) Hill in the Rohtas Plateau, the most eastern extension of the Kaimur Range. The hill is characterised by steep slopes covered with fairly dense mixed jungle and rises from 166 m to 430 m asl. Chunda Hill is bounded in the east and the south-east by the Maspurwa Nadi, in the west by the Suggi Nadi and in the north by the Goptha Nadi which flows towards the north-east to join 3 km downstream the Durgauti, a tributary to Ganga (Ganges River). The cave entrance has been modified into a constructed doorway in the back of a west facing group of sacral buildings at the foot of a steep 100 m high hillside overlooking the pebble strewn riverbed and glen. SITUATION 1947: »… Guptasvera cave (named Suggi Khoh on the map) on the Kaimur plateau, Shahabad district, Bihar, India. The exact [sic! for: misleading] position of the cave is N. lat. 24° 45' 10”, E. long. 83° 45' 40” [unspecified geodetic datum probably Everest 1830] and it lies at an elevation of 500 feet [152.4 m asl]. … The cave opens near the bottom of a wide ravine in the Kaimur Hills. This cave, of course, is not in the Himalaya region but in the Peninsula faunal region« (TURK 1947: 71). SITUATION 1909: »About 7 miles [11 km ] from Shergarh is a cave called the Gupteswar cave« (IMPERIAL GAZETTEER 1907-1909, 22: 272). SITUATION 1906: »The caves of Gupteswar are situated in a narrow, precipitous glen in the Kaimur plateau, about 8 miles from Shergarh. The entrance lies a little way up the hill, and is about 18 feet wide by 12 high; the mouth has, however, been built up into an archway on which are some rough paintings of figures …« (O'MALLEY 1906: 143). SITUATION 1986: MIDDLETON & WALTHAM (1986a: 101-102 edited 1986b, 1992: 101-102) somehow had learned (no source mentioned) about »The long Kaimur Hills, south of Varanasi, are a mixture of sandstone and limestone with many rock shelters and the 350 m long Gupta Cave near Budoker« (note 3).APPROACH (note 4): The site is reached during the dry season from Jhanabad / Jahanabad (note 5) by taking a fair weather road to the south. Near kilometre 15, the village of Chennari / Chanari (note 6) is reached, the last place to get provisions, and another 6 km further on Malhipur / Malahipur (note 7), where one has a choice of three possibilities depending on the time of the year: From about February to April a motorable road follows the Durgauti valley to the cave. From April to October, the rainy season, the cave site is almost impossible to reach because the road is destroyed and the alternative jungle paths are overgrown. From October to February the road is under construction and a variety of footpaths (guide!) can be taken which might leave from the ashram at Ugahni (note 8), a suitable place to leave a car and to proceed on foot: Climb steeply some 150 vertical metres to the edge of the Rohtas plateau, traverse it while passing the settlement of Bhurkura on the right hand side, and descend after a 12 km walk for some 130 m into the Gopta Nadi (a tributary to the Durgauti) to walk up the Suggi Nadi to the few buildings, temples and the rare cave of Guptadham. CAVE DESCRIPTION (Gebauer 1998 & 2000): The entire cave is wet, damp, moist and humid and feels slippery under the soles of bare feet (note 9). The entrance (about 5.5 m wide and 3.5 m high) lies in front of a much contorted fault zone. A series of steps, stretching from wall to wall, leads to a passage towards circa 80° (about half a metre above the streambed of the Suggi) to end after 120 m in a steep descent to the chamber Patale Ganga (note 10) which is filled (7th Dec 1998, 8th Dec 2000) by a 4 m deep pool of clear water with a number of cat fishes. A concrete seepage tube (note 11) runs down from the entrance and along the northern wall of the passage to the pool Patala Ganga. Altogether three passages (representative, not maximal, width by height by length: 2 by 1 m, 4 by 5 m, 5 by 4 m) lead from the south wall into a collapsing maze of various sized passages (some filled with mud excavated in winter 1999/2000 from other passages). At the eastern end of this Central Maze (speleothems all over) runs a passage (the "new" Tulsichaura, 6 by 7 by 40 m, characterised by one central boulder with ugly but sacred calcite formations below active stalactites) to a cross road with three ways on. Climbing four concrete steps from the mud covered floor to the original level of the sedimentary infilling, continues the passage (4 by 5 by 70 m) to a narrow hourglass-shaped slope (-2 m, -35°, extremely slippery in December 1998 but negotiable without a climbing aid in December 2000) which descends to some 10 m of crawlway ending at a mud choke. South of Tulsichaura Crossroads enters Mahadeo Passage (5 m wide, 6 m high, 80 m long). At about halfway stands the stalagmite Mahashivalinga (1.2 m high, black and decaying in 1998, sprinkled with faint streaks of white calcite in 2000), considered as a lingam and worshipped as Mahadeo (note 12). A smaller stalagmite, part way up the wall and reached by a ladder and an exposed climb, is known to grow due to being fed with the milk of Parvati (Shiva's consort) oozing from haggard shaped breasts above. Mahadeo Passage ends in mud and silt covered chokes and collapses near the edge of the mountain. A possible second entrance –allowing a through traffic for pilgrims– could be gained here. North of Tulsichaura Crossroads gives a 20 m long passage (3 by 3 m large, infilled in 1998, excavated in winter 1999 / 2000) access to the largest chamber of the cave (20 by 10 m wide, up to 6 m high, note 13) from where four passages go off. A crawl in the far west was too filled up in December 2000 to be followed for a noteworthy distance but ended in an impenetrable slot spending cool air: obviously a connecting to the pool chamber Patale Ganga. Straight ahead (040°) an inlet (during the rainy season) is represented by several (penetrable?, muddy, slippery!) high level leads below the ceiling and a small but more than 2 m deep pool about 3 m below (ladder required) the floor of the chamber: One of the few 25°C low visibility diving spots (?) of this world which is exclusively accessible barefoot on a muddy ladder. Just before reaching the descend, a mud filled rift to the east (0.6 by 0.6 m large) ends after some 10 m in a mud choke. In the far eastern corner of the chamber enters a crawl passage from the approximate east –once again hot, muddy and slippery– which is said to lead to a chamber. CAVE POTENTIAL: Here, however, I gave up uni-coloured and exhausted after some estimated 20 or 25 m of sliding more down than up a series of ascending and descending but thoroughly moist mud crawls, alternating each other after every 3 or 5 m and slippery to a degree which, if only there were not involved onlookers, would evoke serious humour attacks. CAVE DESCRIPTION 1997: »Gupta caves, also called Gupteshwadam« consist of »… a grid of an interesting passageways … Cross-sections have tubular or rectangular shapes. Here stalagmites, stalactites, helictites, speleothems are found in abundance. Erosional imprints resemble hoof-marks of horses« (PATHAK et al. 1975). CAVE DESCRIPTION 1992: »The Gupteshwar or Guptadham … cave consists of several galleries and tunnels which join the main tunnel almost at right angle (75° to 90°) … measured with prismatic compass … The general cave plan is of anastomosing nature where the whole cave plan is interconnected by several crisscrossing tunnels. Guptadham cave is a typical example of a galleried cavern characterised by horizontal passages and amphitheatre-like extensive areas at the junctions of the tunnels … No sink holes could be traced on the top of the Gupteswar hill … There are more than a dozen limestone quarries and kilns 20 to 25 km away to the south and south-east from the location of Guptadham cave« (SINGH et al. 1992). CAVE DESCRIPTION 1986: MIDDLETON & WALTHAM (1986a: 101-102 edited 1986b, 1992: 101-102) somehow had learned (no source mentioned) about one »… 350 m long Gupta Cave near Budoker.« CAVE DESCRIPTION 1959: »The entrance passage is level until, shortly before 'C', it descends in a steep slope about 20 ft. reaching water about 6 ins. deep which continued to 'D' and round to near 'E'. At 'B', the entrance passage widened and we entered a great chamber with the roof out of sight and the sounds of hundreds of bats could be heard. I imagine that this chamber has been formed by 'cavern breakdown', and the south-east passage referred to [by O'MALLEY 1911] is a way skirting round a consolidated boulder-pile. The passage 'DEF' ends at 'F' in two narrow fissures leading south and west respectively and appear to close in completely within 20 ft. The sacred stalactite is near 'E', about 3 ft. high with deep holes on top and near the base. It is black and hideous due to offerings of Ghi (clarified butter). Going north from 'D' [towards 'G'], ascending 3 or 4ft., a dry passage leads round at 'G' to to a wide flooded passage with a low roof. A vertical drop of about 3 ft. reached the water which at that point was waist deep. The place seemed very airless and bubbles of gas rose from the stagnant water, so I did not venture further. Returning to 'D' and going east [towards 'H'], one climbs up about 6 ft. into a broad and high passage with a hard clay floor, slightly barrelled and about 12 ft. wide and equally high. This is known as 'the dancing floor of the Gods' [note 14] … At 'H' the clay floor descends steeply, dropping about 15 ft. in height, and then rises equally steeply to the same level and the passage apparently continues, bending south. At the lower part there also may be a way on northwards« (GLENNIE 1959: 27-31).CAVE DESCRIPTION 1957: »… Guptasvera Cave (named Suggi Khoh on the map) … is a limestone cave with dry mud [sic!] on parts of the floor and permanent pools of water« (TURK 1947: 71). CAVE DESCRIPTION 1871: In the »sacred 'Gupta' cavern of the Doorgowtee valley the direction of the passages is mainly determined by the jointing, and partly by cracks and fissures in the contorted strata« (MALLET 1871: 42). GEOLOGY: The upper part of Chunda Hill consists, according to SINGH et al. (1992), of 90 m thick sandstones above 170 m of Rohtas Limestones (Lower Vindhyan) of the Semri Series, called Semari Series by PATHAK et al. (1975). Due to impurities in the host rock, all speleothems in Guptadham Gufa are dull, dark and of brownish grey colours and of shapes reminding of barbecued intestines. The "helictites" claimed by PATHAK et al. (1975) most like represent awkward shaped (decaying) stalamites. Pending from the multitude of ceiling cracks is a large number of stalactites but there are only very few stalagmites, even less so after most of the cave floor was "concretised" in winter 1999/2000. Due to the specific monsoonal flow regime, characterised by catastrophic flood events, the speleothems (chemoclastical sediments) at lower elevations in the cave are erased while those higher up remain more or less untouched. An additional factor is the drainage restriction, caused by collapsed resurgences, which results in a flow backup and the deposition of physioclastical sediments (sand, mud, silt) which cover the entire cave floor and do not only bury but also provide a poor, unstable basement for possible stalagmites. In the drier and more compacted parts of the sediment floor cover (GLENNIE 1959: "Hard clay floor, slightly barrelled") occur ripple marks and calcite crusted drip-holes which were described by PATHAK et al. (1975) as "erosional imprints resembling hoof marks of horses" and by SINGH et al. (1992) as "cup shaped lumps." The lower part of each and every cross-section of the cave passages is covered by physioclastical sediments (water, mud, sand) which have built up under low energy conditions. The irregular wall profiles mirror the frequently bedded (1 to 6 cm thick) and occasionally much contorted and irregularly composed argillaceous and arenaceous Lower Vindhyan (Semri Series) Rohtas stage limestones. The ceiling is almost always extending into a joint controlled rift and rarely formed by ceiling collapse along laminar marly interbeds in the strata. HYDROLOGY: No flow forms, e.g. scallops, mark the wet walls of the cave which is obviously of vadose origin. There are a few pools but no laminar or even turbulent water flow was seen in the early dry season (December 1998, 2000) and the distal ends in the north and east of the cave function without any doubt as inlets and are flushed by headwaters originating from an uncertain catchment area. SINGH et al. (1992) report the absence of sinkholes on the almost inaccessible Gupteshvar Hill (an easy claim difficult to verify) but ascribe the cave waters to infiltration from the overlying sandstones which truly represents a sufficient reservoir for limited percolation. Peek flows however might be fed from the (sinking? river) Goptha Nadi in the north-east which can be suspected to take a subterranean course along a major fault (about N24°46'00": E83°50'00" to N24°45'00": E83°48'30") which separates the peninsular cave hill from the adjacent plateau. An island in Gotha Nadi (near N24°46'10": E83°49'35") hints to a reduced speed of the river in the terrane below this fault. CULTURAL HISTORY - folklore / cave legends: BANURJI (1879: 365-366): »To the Kharwar, equally with all other aboriginal people, the great seat of pilgrimage is the awful cave of Gupteshwar. Situated among the wildest and grandest phenomena, the shrine is adored by the sage Hindu equally with the savage hill-man … The shrine is visited all year round. But the greatest festivities are observed in the month of Falgun during the Siva Ratri holidays … The shrine itself is is situated in a wonderful cave, whose length in all its windings and branches remains yet to be explored … We go straight for 150 yards through a dark passage, where the rays of torches impart but a faint glimmer. An aperture in this wall brings us to the passage of the shrine itself, slippery slabs and rough boulders enhancing the difficulty of the pilgrim's progress, while, the water dripping from the roof moistens the skin. The [venerated stalagmite] Gupteshwar is a big upright stone. The head is capped with horns and knobs, smoothed by the constant fall of water-drops from the roof of the cavern. To the [aboriginal] Kharwar, Gupteshwar is the great creator who made the world out of nothing. To the Aryan, he is the mighty Rudra of the Vedas …« BANURJI (1879: 367): »According to the [aboriginal] Kharwars, in times of old Gupteshwar lay concealed in the cave, the approach to which was unknown. The sound of heavenly music [bats?], however, charmed every night the ears of the shepherds who reared buffaloes in the adjacent jungle. The shepherds reported this to the Kharwar chief, Sew Sinha, who lived on the top of the plateau, at Bhar Kurâ [Bhurkura]. Sew Sinha came to the vale beneath and fasted for nights, hearing the music and imploring the deity to bless his tribe. The deity heard his prayer, appeared to him in a dream, and ordered him to cut open a passage and establish the worship of Gupta Baba.« The Brahmin story of the appearance of Gupteshwar is more elaborate: When Parvati –consort of Shiva– or, in some versions of the story, Vishnu managed to cause the self-destruction of the demon Bhasmansur (Basmansur, Basmasur, Bhasmasur, Vahmasur), the god had taken refuge in this cave (BANURJI 1879: 367-368) and till today a fallen boulder on the approach to the venerated stalagmite is pointed out as the burnt remains of the demon. CAVE CLIMATE: BUCHANAN (1926: 116) measured on 1813.01.15 an air temperature of 76°F (24.°C) and suspected a strong air current because the air was not in any degree offensive despite of innumerable bats in addition to 40 to 50 visitors with 4 burning torches. On 1947.03.13 GLENNIE (1959) read a temperature of 78.8°F (26°C, air or water?) associated with 100% (?) humidity and assumed bad air. On 1998.12.07 read not very reliable thermometer 26.5°C (10h00) in the central maze and 27.0°C (10h45) near the eastern end. CAVE LIFE: Concerning the catfish (Pisces: Siluriformes) inside Guptadham, it was SHERWILL (1848 in OLDHAM 1926: 188), who noted »…an abundance of Singhee fish« which appear to correspond to »singtee« (note 15). GLENNIE (1947a: 591, 592; 1959) reported from inside the cave the presence of catfish (note 16): Clariidae Bonaparte 1846: Heteropneustes Müller 1840: Heteropneustes fossilis Bloch 1794 (note 17) common to the local streams (note 18), crickets (homoeogryllus cincticornis Walk) and whip spiders (Araneidae: Amblypygi, chasing the crickets) feasting on the libations to the god (note 19). TURK (1947: 71) gave a taxonomical description of a millipede (Diplopoda: Chondromorpha kaimura) collected by Edward Aubrey Glennie on 13 March 1946 »in a roomy side passage about 150 yards from the entrance« (TURK 1947: 71) where apparently similar millipeds were still thriving in 1998 and 2000. TURK (1947: 73): Diplopoda … Glyphiulus: »Fourteen females of a species of this genus were taken in the Gupteswar cave [sic! Guptadham], Kaimur plateau [Kaimur range: Rohtas plateau], Behar [Rohtas district, Bihar state] … 13.iii.46 by Brig. E. A. Glennie … but nothing more can be usefully added until a specimen of the male is taken.« The »hundreds of bats« (Chiroptera indet.) noticed by GLENNIE (1957) have dwindled to a few dozen in December 1998.12.07 (early morning) and two solitary individual bats (one small, one large) in the late evening of December 2000.12.08.
NOTE 1: As far as I know, Guptadham has been recorded as Gupta Cave near Budoker (MIDDLETON & WALTHAM 1986a: 101-102 edited 1986b, 1992); Gupta Cavern, Doorgowtee valley (MALLET, F R 1871: 42); Gupta cavern, Durgauti (Doorgowtee) valley (PASCOE, E H 1959, 2: 507); Gupta caves (PATHAK, M et al. 1975); [Grotte de] Gupta, Suggi Kho (LINDBERG, K 1960d: 46 after GLENNIE, E A 1959: 27-31); Guptadham (SINGH, S et al. 1992); Guptasvera Cave named Suggi Khoh on the map (TURK, F A 1947: 71); Gupteshwadam (COURBON, P & CHABERT, C 1986: 70, 1989: 123); Gupteshwadam Cave (PATHAK, M et al. 1975); Gupteshwar (BANURJI, C S 1879: 365-366; SINGH, S et al. 1992); Gupteswar Cave (GLENNIE, E A 1959: 27-31; Hashmie, M N A 1946.02.21: Letter to Glennie, E A; IMPERIAL GAZETTEER 1907-1909, 22: 272; TURK, F A 1947: 73); Gupti Banaras (BUCHANAN, F 1812-1813: 113ssqq edited by OLDHAM, C E A W 1926: 115-117); Gupti Benaras (BUCHANAN, F 1812-1813: 113ssqq edited by MARTIN, M 1838, 1: 524-526); Suggi Kho (GLENNIE, E A 1969: 109); Suggi Khoh (TURK, F A 1947: 71); but "jhuggi" (Hindi), a synonym of "bustee", signifies a »shanty settlement« (LONELY PLANET, India 2005 glossary: 1008) or »slum« (LONELY PLANET, India 2005 glossary: 1006). NOTE 2: BANURJI, C S (1879: 366) noted one fabulous tunnel which is believed to connect to the foot of the Jagannath temple at Puri. O'MALLEY, L S S (1906: 143) recorded two fabulous tunnels which were said connect to Benares on the west and the Vishnupad temple at Gaya on the east. These »can only be entered by scrambling on one's hands and knees through puddles of mud and water.« NOTE 3: I find it difficult to reconstruct the »Budoker« of MIDDLETON & WALTHAM (1986a: 101-102) unless I assume this is a much garbled version of the village of Bhurkura (WGS84 24°48'55”N: 83°47'32”E: 350 m) as indicated on Survey of India sheet 63-P/13 (1975 edition) on the approach from Malhipur / Malahipur (WGS84 24°52'00”N: 83°46'20”E) south across the plateau -- the shortcut across the plateau bypassing the circuituous approach following the Durgauti valley. NOTE 4: Localities: Bhurkura (±100 m) 24°48'55"N: 83°47'32"e: 350 m (WGS84, 1998), Chunda hill (±100 m) 24°45'35"N: 83°48'50"E: 430 m (Everest 1830, Survey of India sheet 63-P/13 edition 1975), Guptadham (±50 m) 24°45'24”N: 83°48'30”E (WGS84, 2000.12.08, 11h47, HDG): circa (±15 m) 185 m (Survey of India sheet 63-P/13 edition 1975) Shergarh (±100 m) 24°49'30”N: 83°44'00"E: 330 m asl (Everest 1830, Survey of India sheet 63-P/13 edition 1975) Suggi Nala mouth (±100 m) 24°46°15"N: 83°48'20"E: 166 m (Survey of India sheet 63-P/13 edition 1975). NOTE 5: Jhanabad (Survey of India sheet 63-O/16, edition 1975), indicated as »Jahanabad« in the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 41 E5), lies on the National Highway NH2 (GTR = Great Trunk Road, polemically Great Trouble Road) from Benares WSW to Saseram. The inconspicuous road off to the south (right) looks like any gap between the building flanking the main road. Here, I read the position 25°02'31"N: 83°48'03"E: 80 m asl (±50 m, WGS84, 2000.12.08) with a then unstable 4-channel GPS Garmin 4. NOTE 6: Chennari 24°55'05"N: 83°47'30"E: 101 m (WGS 84 modified from Everest 1830) (Survey of India sheet 63-O/16 edition1975) is indicated as »Chanari« in the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 58 A1). NOTE 7: Malhipur (24°52'00”N: 83°46'20“E: 105 m, GPS Garmin 4, 1998), the »Malahipur« in the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 58 A1). NOTE 8: Ugahni village (±250 m 24°50'40"N: 83°47'25"E: 115 m asl (GPS 1998), Ugahni ashram (±250 m) 24°50'34"N: 83°47'29"E: 110 m (GPS 1998).NOTE 9: Needless to say that visitors are not allowed to wear shoes in the sanctuary because »no Native … keeps his shoes on when he enters a room, unless he intends disrespect« (ROBERTS 1897 / 1898: Forty-one years in India.- chapter 11 note 8). NOTE 10: The pool Patale Ganga (literally: underworld river) at the distal end of the main passage seems to have been dry on 1813.01.15 as BUCHANAN, F (1812-1813 edited by MARTIN 1838, 1: 524) encountered »… no stream. At the end, indeed, is a small hole, which may possibly lead to a subterranean river, but I have not heard, that anyone has ventured to penetrate through this opening.« SHERWILL, W S (1848) is said (not seen by me) to show a »deep stony well« on his cave plan (OLDHAM, C E A W 1926: 188). This part of the cave appears to have been entirely flooded when GLENNIE, E A (1959: 29) came around: »The entrance passage is level until … it descends in a steep slope about 20 ft. reaching water …« On 1998.12.07 and 2000.12.08 it was a deep terminal lake of swimming depth. NOTE 11: This concrete tube and a side branch to the "new" Tulsichaura Hall is used to pump air into the far reaches of the cave when it is thronged by thousands of pushing pilgrims during the Shivaratri Mela at the1st full moon after the spring equinox. A lesson learned from –>Vaishno Devi Goffar (Jammu) where numerous pilgrims were suffocated. NOTE 12: IMPERIAL GAZETTEER (1907-1909, 22: 272) recorded »… a cave called the Gupteswar cave, containing numerous stalactites, one of which is worshipped as the god Mahadeo« and Hashmie, M N A (1946.02.21: Letter to Glennie, Edward Aubrey) confirmed that »Gupteswar … has a deity of Mahadeo (Shiv) in the centre.« NOTE 13: »The north arm is only 92 feet long [28 m] and is narrower and lower than most other parts of the cave, but terminates in an apartment called Tulasichura which is 92 feet long [28 m] and in the middle both wide and lofty« (BUCHANAN 1812-1813, edited by MARTIN 1838, 1: 525). GLENNIE (1959: 29) missed the well which, however, may have been submerged and invisible at the time of his visit: »Going north … ascending 3 or 4 ft., a dry passage leads … to a wide flooded passage with a low roof. A vertical drop of about 3 ft. reached the water which at that point was waist-deep.« NOTE 14: »natamandir -- dancing hall« (LONELY PLANET, India 2005: 1110). NOTE 15: FERRARIS (2007: 97) lists »Mystus Scopoli 1777 preoccupied by Mystus Gray 1854: 155« and expands on »Mystus seengtee (Sykes, 1839) Pimelodus Seengtee Sykes, 1839: 164. Type locality: Deccan, India. Holotype (6 inches [about 15 cm]): possibly BMNH 1857.6.13.154 (1, dry). Also described as new in Sykes (1840: 61); illustrated and described in more detail in Sykes (1841: 374, pl. 66, fig. 2). Illustration of type reproduced in Chakrabarty & Ng (2005: 10, fig. 6). Distribution: Krishna and Cauvery river basins, India (Chakrabarty & Ng, 2005). Remarks: See Chakrabarty & Ng (2005: 18) for discussion of the status of the holotype of the species.« NOTE 16: »Osteichthyian fishes of the Order Siluriformes, known by the English common name of catfishes, form a well diagnosed natural group of primarily freshwater fishes. Most catfishes are apparently tolerant of only fresh water but the salinity tolerance of several species extends to, or is even limited to, estuarine or even oceanic levels of salinity. Thus, while most catfishes are recorded from inland waters, the distribution of the order also includes coastal regions of continents and nearby islands. Catfishes often have large, heavy bones that lend themselves to fossilization and, comparatively large otoliths. As such, a large number of species of catfishes have been named from complete or partial skeletal fossils or even from only otoliths« (FERRARIS 2007: Introduction).NOTE 17: Heteropneustes fossilis Bloch 1794, the Silurus fossilis Bloch (1794: 46, plate 370 figure 2), type localiy Tranquebar [+], is designated and illustrated in PAEPKE, H.-J. (1999): 87, plate 25, figure 3. + Tranquebar (Tarangambadi 11°02'N: 79°51'E nima.mil/geonames, accessed 16.11.2003) on AMS sheet NC44-02 and in the India Road Atlas (Eicher Goodearth 2006: 117 G4) on the Coromandel Coast at the mouths of the Kaveri (Cauvery) south of Pondicherry (north of Pondicherry Karaikal) and in Nagapattinam district, Tamil Nadu state. NOTE 18: Glennie netted one pale (unpigmented) specimen of a catfish found inside the cave, and noticed that it (the fish) became brown coloured in fresh water within 20 minutes and turned steel-grey when preserved in alcohol. NOTE 19: Amplygids (Amblypygi) are spectacular, most secretive and raptorial animals with flat body, a narrow constriction between carapace and abdomen, and extremely long pedipalp whip-like first pair of legs. WEYGOLD (1994: 243) mentions about five species in India, including Amblypygi: Charontidae: Charninae (WEYGOLD, P 1994: 243 ) and Amblypygi: Phrynichidae: Phrynichinae: Phrynichus (WEYGOLD, P 1994: 245). NOTE 20: »The Khairwars or Kharwars [Kherwari] are an important tribe of Mirzapur and Chota Nagpur. There is some reason for supposing that they are an occupational offshoot of the Kols and Cheros, who have become a distinct group through taking to the manufacture of edible catechu from the wood of the khair tree (Acacia catechu)« (RUSSEL, R V & HIRA LAL, R B 1916, 1 chapter 36: Kolarian tribes).
Documents
Bibliography 28/03/2016- Banurji, Chandra Sekhara 1877, 1879; Buchanan [Hamilton], Francis 1813 edited by Martin, Montgomery 1828, edited by Oldham, C E A W 1926; Courbon, Paul & Chabert, Claude 1986, 1989; Craven, Stephen A 1969; F W 1928 (on: Buchanan 1812-1813); Gebauer, Herbert Daniel 2001c; Glennie, Edward Aubrey 1947b, 1950a, 1959, 1969; Imperial Gazetteer 1907-1909; Juberthie, Christian, Decu, Vasile, Cazals, Monique & Lebreton, Bernard 2001; Lindberg, Knut 1960d; Mallet, Frederik R 1871; Middleton, John R & Waltham, Tony [Anthony C] 1986a, 1986b, 1992; Oldham, Charles E A W 1922, 1926; O'Malley, L S S 1906 Statistical Account and Gazetteer of Shahbad District; Pathak, M & Jhangeshwar Nath Pandey 1975; Pascoe, E H 1950, 1959, 1964, 1973; Russel, R V & Hira Lal, Rai Bahadur 1916; Sherwill, Walter Stanhope 1846; Singh, Savindra, Singh, M S & Dubey, Alok 1992; Turk, Frank A 1946, 1947; Weygoldt, Peter 1994.
History
EXPLORATION HISTORY: 1813.01.15 (day after Makar Shankranti day): Francis Buchanan (later: Hamilton) visited, described »Gupti Benares« (BUCHANAN, F 1813 / 1926) and produced the earliest known cave plan (on a scale of 1 inch to 100 feet, circa 1: 12'000) of a natural cave in India. 1828: MARTIN, Montgomery (1828, 1: 524-526) published Buchanan's description and the accounts given in Statistical Account and Gazetteer of the Shahbad district (O'MALLEY, L S S 1906: 143). The entries in the IMPERIAL GAZETTEER (1907-1909, 22: 272) and in BUCHANAN (1813 / 1926) have been condensed therefrom. 1846: SHERWILL, W S (1846) published a more impressionistic than representative cave plan -- except of the entrance series much distorted. There is at least one erroneous right-angle bend which results in the clockwise turning of the passages by about 90°. The scale provided by OLDHAM, C E A W (1926) for the map is disputable and results in an accumulated passage length of about 240 m. 1871: MALLET, Frederick R (1871) made the »sacred Gupta Cavern of Doorgowtee valley« known to the scientific world. 1879: BANURJI, Chandra Sekhara (1879) described the pilgrimage and cave as only a visitor would. He noted (pages 366-367) that »The Brahmin has not yet succeeded in wresting the shrine from the hands of the aborigines: The priest is a Kharwar …« (note 20) 1946: HASHMIE, M N A (1946), then Superintendent, later Surveyor General of Pakistan, reported the cave to Brigadier Edward Aubrey Glennie, the soldiering British caver and self-styled »Recorder of Caves«. 1946.03.13: Hashmie, M N A and Glennie, Edward Aubrey paid a somewhat hurried visit to the »Gupteshwar Cave« (GLENNIE 1957: 27-31) or »Guptasvera cave« (TURK 1947: 71) -- a few days before Glennie retired to England. 1975: PATHAK et al. (1975) attempted to interprete the cave geomorphologically and arrived at a wonderful bashing of technical terms. 1992: SINGH et al. (1992) based their report on analysed samples of rocks, speleothems, soils and waters collected over a period of 30 months. Trying their best, they struggled with unfamiliar concepts of karstology, but their geographical description of the cave and its environs makes sense. 1998.12.06-07: Gebauer, H D made an overnight excursion from Varanasi / Benares, assisted by »tour escort« Sushil Kumar Roy and driver Rakesh Kumar Tiwari, guided by Kameshwara from Ughali village. 1999 - 2000, winter: The cave suffered considerable modification by man: More than half of the cave sediment, including quite a few stalagmites, were dug away and the spoil piled up in the Central Maze. The main routes were covered with a concrete floor sided by low walls. Naked electric light bulbs powered by a generator served for illumination. The previously mud choked passage leading to the »Old Tulsichaura« chamber was opened. 2000.12.08 - 09: H. D. Gebauer made a 2nd overnight excursion from Varanasi / Benares, this time assisted by Rakesh Kumar Tiwari (driver) and his mate Ram Kailash, guided by Kameshwara from Ughali village. CAVE PLAN HISTORY: 1813 January 15: Buchanan (Mss EUR D 95: 4°33, 706 held by the British Library: India Office Library and Records). See also BUCHANAN (1813 ed. by OLDHAM 1926: 116, postscript to note 3 of page 115). 1838: MARTIN, M (1838, 1: 524-526): Cave description. 1846: SHERWILL, W S (1846): Inset in geological map of southern Shahbad. 1926: BUCHANAN, F (1926, opposite page 188): Hand sketch copy of W.S. Sherwill's cave plan. 1947: GLENNIE, E A (1959: 27-31): Very basic sketch of main routes. 1985 -1987: SINGH, Savindra et alii (1992): »General Plan« not to scale. 1998.12.06-07: H. D. Gebauer mapped 424.4 m / -8.6 m of accessible passages to grade 4c. 2000.12.08-09: H. D. Gebauer mapped the recently re-opend »Old Tulsichaura« chamber, complete with climbing some 3 m down into the sump well there, attempted to push the north-east inlet, and eventually added 114 m of accessible passages to grade 4c and 3b (total: 538.2 m / -12.6 m).
Caves nearby
| Distance (km) | Name | Length (m) | Depth (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10.7 | SHERGARH UNDERGROUNDS | ||
| 10.7 | SHERGARH STEPWELL | ||
| 31.3 | CHANDAN SHAHID PIR (Dargah ka) | ||
| 31.6 | TARA CHANDI DEVI (Cave of) | ||
| 33.3 | TELHARKUND ROCK SHELTERS | ||
| 34.0 | RAMKHOH | ||
| 72.5 | SITA THAPA GUPHA | ||
| 79.2 | GAURISHANKAR GUPHA (Dayal 1906) | ||
| 117.3 | YONI DVARA, Gaya |