Matjaževe kamre
Matjaževe kamre, a 500‑meter‑long cave system with characteristic open windows overlooking the Sovra River, lie in a steep limestone wall along the Žiri–Rovte road, approximately six kilometers from Žiri. In the 1990 Slovenian Cave Cadastre, the system was recorded with a length of 300 meters, but later explorations revealed additional passages that today form a more extensive network of fossil cave corridors. The entrances—six in total—open high above the left bank of the Sovra, in the area of Zavratec, where the rock face rises sharply above the river and reveals a series of natural windows carved into the stone.
Matjaževe kamre are the remnants of a once active water cave carved by a headwater branch of the Poljanska Sora—the Sovra stream. Although Sovra is not a karst river, it entered a band of Middle Triassic limestone while cutting its gorge, and in one of its meanders eroded laterally into the rock, hollowing out a network of passages that today form the fossil cave system. As the river continued to incise deeper into the gorge, the formerly water‑filled passages were left high above the present riverbed and became dry. There is also a possibility that the passages formed primarily through corrosion along tectonic lines, a common process in this part of Slovenia. The lowest cave level lies about ten meters above the Sovra and opens into several windows visible from the opposite bank. Inside the cave, speleothems are modestly developed, while the upper parts show clear signs of frost weathering, evidence of colder climatic periods in the cave’s history.
Beyond their geomorphological significance, Matjaževe kamre hold exceptional archaeological value. Archaeologists discovered traces of Neanderthals dating back roughly 50,000 years. Based on the findings, Neanderthals used the cave as a hunting outpost, which is supported by the presence of animal bones and stone tools. Excavations carried out in the 1970s uncovered remains of Alpine marmots, cave bears, bison, wolves, and other animals that inhabited the region during the Pleistocene. Stone tools found in the cave provide important evidence of human presence during the Upper Paleolithic. To this day, the archaeological discoveries from Matjaževe kamre are the oldest known archaeological finds in the Gorenjska region.
Around 12,000 BCE, the cave was used by the Epigravettians, one of the last Upper Paleolithic cultures, which were later succeeded by Mesolithic groups after 10,000 BCE. Matjaževe kamre thus represent a place where geological history, prehistoric human activity, and modern exploration intersect—a space that carries a multilayered story of life, nature, and time.
Access to the cave is relatively straightforward but requires caution. Following the Žiri–Logatec road, one reaches the location marked by WGS84 coordinates φ 46.00254, λ 14.14571. Parking is possible on the right side of the road. A protective roadside barrier runs along the edge, and by walking about 50 meters on its outer side, a visible footpath appears, descending from the right bank—where the road runs—into the Sovra riverbed. During high water, the crossing is dangerous due to rapids and small drops just a few meters downstream, but in summer or during low water levels, the passage is easy. On the left bank, a short but steep two‑meter ascent leads to a forested slope, and after a few dozen meters, the cave entrances appear in the rock wall above. A climbing area with fixed anchors rises above the site, further emphasizing the vertical character of the landscape.
I documented Matjaževe kamre together with my daughter Neža, which gave the experience a deeply personal dimension. We illuminated the cave entirely on our own—without a larger team or external technical support. Moving through the dark passages required patience, coordination, and a careful sense of space. Neža carried and directed the lights, while I composed the scenes and captured the moments when the light revealed the textures of the limestone or the sharp contours of the fossil passages. In such moments, the cave reveals itself in ways the human eye cannot perceive in darkness—shaped by water, time, and silence. Documenting Matjaževe kamre was therefore both an act of exploration and creation, a shared experience that connected two generations in a mutual appreciation of the underground world.
Today, Matjaževe kamre stand as a natural and cultural landmark that unites geological history, archaeological traces of early humans, and contemporary curiosity. They are a place where stories of Neanderthals, Ice Age animals, Epigravettian hunters, cavers, archaeologists, and documentarians converge. A place that must be approached with care, respect, and an awareness that one is stepping into one of the oldest testimonies of human presence in the Gorenjska region
Sources:
Cadastre of Slovenian caves, URL: https://www.katasterjam.si (August 4, 2022),
Mihevc, A. 1987: Matjaž's chambers. Žirovski occasional journal, 13. Jury,
Mihevac, Andrej. (1989). Naše jame 31, 66-72, Matjaževe kamre,
Skoberne, P., Peterlin, S. 1991: Inventory of the most important natural heritage of Slovenia, part 2: central Slovenia. Ljubljana.,
Osole, Franc. (1976). Archeological Journal 27, Matjaževe Kamre, Paleolithic cave site,
Goblet, Vida. Kotnik, Jože. (1993). Geologija 36, 95-118, Alpine marmot from Matjaž's cameras.
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