KHURISHA 1 (Krem)

Herbert Daniel Gebauer - 06/01/2018

The first of the caves, which are either sacred to the pagan goddess Khuri or simply believed to be called -Tea Cup Cave- (or so), starts with a vertical cave entrance requiring more than one single 30 m rope. ETYMOLOGY: The Khasi -ka lei khuri- is a household demon of a certain clan (jaid Dkhar) of these hills (SINGH, N 1906: 38) and the preposition -sha- corresponds to the English to, towards (ibido: 188) while the Khasi noun -ka khuri- is a cup, a bowl (ibido: 38) and the noun -u sha- means tea (ibido: 188). Carlyn [Phyrngap] corrected the spelling to Khurisha. (Jarratt & Cowper 2005.02.25 Mss -Krem [deleted: Kurisha] Khurisha 1; Jarratt 2005.03.06 Mss -Cave Log- vol. XII: 22, 25/2/05) when the cave name was initially spelled Krem Kurisha (Brooks 2005 Mss: Meghalaya 2005 Diary; Brooks 2005.03.16 Mss: Meghalaya 2005 Survey Summary; Brooks 2005.10.05 revised Mss: Meghalaya 2005 Survey Summary; Sheen, R.F. 2004 Mss Meghalaya Cave Record 28/02/04; Sheen, Robin F. 2004.11.06 personal corespondence dated 27/02/04). SITUATION (note 1): Somewhere past one of the locally ubiqituous pine groves (Sheen 2003.02.22 Mss: Krem Khurisha) at an unspecified location somewhere on the eastern flank of the Shnongrim ridge below the village of Shnongrim. CAVE DESCRIPTION 1 (Sheen 2003.02.22 Mss: Krem Khurisha): Deep gryke requiring tackle - pothole / shaft following on. CAVE DESCRIPTION 2 (Cowper & Jarratt 2005.02.25 Mss: Krem [deleted: Kurisha] Khurisha): A series of pitches with small sections of whitened [sic!] horizontal passaga that ends at a small 'chamber' where a very small streama disappears down a very tight calcited passage. Starts as what looks like a gryke.CAVE DESCRIPTION 3 (Jarratt 2005.03.06 Mss -Cave Log- vol. XII: 22, 24/2/05): A wide pothole, c. 90 m deep to calcite choked streamway. CAVE DESCRIPTION 4 (Arbenz, T 2005.02 Mss: Abstracts.xls): Calcite choke. CAVE DESCRIPTION 5 (Brooks 2005.10.05 Mss: Meghalaya 2005 Survey Summary): Total 2005 Survey 111.05 Vertial Range. PROSPECTS 1 (Sheen 2003.02.22 Mss: Krem Khurisha): Wishfull interpretation of GPS readings (with unidentified precision errors) make Krem Khurisha 1 a wished for part of the downstream system of Krem –>Synrang Labit. PROSPECTS 2 (Sheen 2004.02.28 Mss: Krem Khurisha): The other sinks in the locality [–>Wah Thylliang], Krem Khurisha, and Krem Soh Lyluait appear to focus into the same doline 68 m to S/E through abandoned deeply cut open rifts, typically 10 to 15 m deep and often only 1/2 m wide, to abandoned and choked sinks. PROSPECTS 3 (Cowper & Jarratt 2005.02.25 Mss: Krem [deleted: Kurisha] Khurisha 1): None. PROSPECTS 4 (Jarratt 2005.03.06 Mss -Cave Log- vol. XII: 22, 24/2/05): Possible large passages at the bottom and maybe accessible by ladder. CAVE LIFE (Cowper & Jarratt 2005.02.25 Mss: Krem [deleted: Kurisha] Khurisha 1) recorded: Bats (Chiroptera), spiders (Arachnidae: Aranea: Sparassidae: conf. Heteropoda sp.) millipedes and many shells: About a third of the way downthe cave it appears a dog (or a sheep), whose bones have been calcited, died in a small chamber a long time ago.the cave it appears a dog (or a sheep), whose bones have been calcited, died in a small chamber a long time ago.