Lieglloch Cave

Otherwise, the portal, which is 15 meters wide and 10 meters high, only reveals itself at an altitude of 1,290 meters after one stands directly in front of it. One reaches the Lieglloch via the district of Hollam, above Tauplitz. Walking time is about 45 minutes.

Due to its good accessibility and visibility, humans were in the cave very early on, possibly hunting cave bears. Numerous excavations since 1926 have unearthed valuable finds (two hearths, stone tools, a bone needle, a bone flute with two holes, a medieval double-headed pendant, etc.). Other cave contents were taken and used by farmers as fertilizer during the interwar period.

Only the first part of the cave is easily accessible. A horizontal passage can be followed for about 50 meters, sometimes upright, sometimes bent over.

The Liegl Legend

Once upon a time, in Hochlamb above Tauplitz, stood the estate of the farmer Liegl; and because a large cave stretches deep into the mountain behind the Liegl farm at the foot of the Bergerwand, this cave was called "Lieglloch".

Once, three wild maidens lived in the Lieglloch, who were very good-natured. They always fetched milk from the Liegl farmer, for which they let him have the necessary water from a spring in their cave for both man and beast. Furthermore, they allowed everything to thrive perfectly on the meadows of the Liegl farmer, as well as in the fields, so that the farmer soon became rich and gained great respect in Tauplitz.

This went well for centuries. But after many generations, suddenly a Liegl farmer became so arrogant that he believed he no longer needed the wild maidens. When that evening one of the wild maidens wanted to fetch milk, the farmer refused to give it to her. After the wild maiden offered him her silver belt for milk, he said that this was only enough for once. The wild maiden became very angry. But when the farmer would not change his mind, she promised to lend him the belt for this one time. However, to allow the wild maidens to continue fetching milk, she offered him a choice between two options: if he returned the wild maiden's silver belt, he could have enduring fertility for his meadows and fields; otherwise, he could wish for money, for which he would have to tie the belt around the tree standing in front of the house and express his wish.

The Liegl farmer chose to keep the belt and make money from it. As soon as the wild maiden had left, he hurried to the tree with the belt, tied it around the trunk, and shouted that he wanted a table drawer full of gold. As soon as this wish was expressed, a powerful clap of thunder erupted, and a bright lightning bolt struck the tree with the wild maiden's belt and completely tore it apart. The farmer was unharmed, but he was seized with great fear and ran into the house, locked the front door, and trembled like aspen leaves. When some lads passed by the Liegl farmer after midnight, they still saw light in the room, and when one of them curiously took a look through the window, he staggered back in horror. At the table sat a headless man counting a large number of gold coins.

The wild maidens have been gone since that day. The Lieglloch still exists today. What happened to the headless Liegl farmer is unknown. However, the later Liegl farmers had great difficulties maintaining the farm. The harvests became increasingly smaller, and the water supply became scarcer. For more than a hundred years, the once Liegl estate has only been a lease (Pfannerlehen).

Source: Legendary Hinterberg Valley, tales and legends from Bad Mitterndorf, Pichl-Kainisch, and Tauplitz from the end of the Ice Age until the construction of the railway, Matthias Neitsch. Compiled as part of the Leader+ project "KultiNat" 2005 – 2007.
© Matthias Neitsch