Jenolan Caves, just west of Sydney, on the east coast of Australia, are frequently described as one of the most spectacular and readily accessible limestone cave systems in the world. This richly illustrated book reveals the stories of Jenolan Caves in in a fascinating mixture of historical photographs, informative illustrations, detailed maps, easy to read text, and stunning colour photographs. Each of the show caves is described in detail, including the iconic formations that make each one a treasure-house of crystal. However, not all of the Jenolan wonders are secreted underground. The immediate surrounds of the Caves are replete with abundant wildlife immersed in the uniquely Australian bushland. This book contains 13 details maps, 23 vibrant illustrations, 47 intriguing historical photographs, 199 full colour photos, and 72,000 words of engaging narration, spread over 7 Chapters, 3 Appendices, and extensive Endnotes. Chapter 1. Introduction to Jenolan Caves Chapter 2. Hidden in the Mountains. (Location, rivers, land use, geology, climate, vegetation.) Chapter 3. Caves- Rocks, Water and Time. (Formation of the Caves over the last 416 million years.) Chapter 4. Cave Formations- Speleothems (How the great variety of cave formations come about.) Chapter 5. Experiencing the Caves Over Time. (Aboriginal and European discovery and use of the Caves.) Chapter 6. The Show Caves of Jenolan. Chapter 7. The Jenolan Surrounds. (Flora and Fauna, including extinct megafauna, and 'missing' animals.) Appendix 1. Gundungurra Dreamtime Story Appendix 2. Cave Chemistry Appendix 3. Dating Jenolan Caves Suggested Further Reading Endnotes

People have been interested in caves for a very long time. Our distant ancestors used them for shelter, as sources of water, and as places in which to conduct essential rituals. They adorned their walls with quite sophisticated artwork depicting both their existential and spiritual concerns. Caves feature in our mythology, they are used as places of worship in many cultures, and they are used throughout the world as places in which to store prized foodstuffs and wine. For at least two hundred years they have attracted scientists, artists, photographers, and recreational cavers. This book aims examines how caves form, the light they shed on past environments and climates, and the values, both environmental and cultural, that they provide to humanity. This second edition of Caves: Processes, Development, and Management is a welcome revision of the author’s earlier treatment released over twenty years ago. It has been updated, significantly expanded, and largely rewritten. The intervening years have seen a dramatic increase in karst and cave research globally, with significant advances in our understanding of fundamental processes, in our ability to extract proxy climatic and environmental data from cave deposits, and in our understanding of the breadth of cave values and as a result the complexity of their management needs. This new edition adopts a broad international perspective in the research examples used and the cited literature, and has actively sought out material from the tropical world and the southern continents, thus avoiding the European and North American bias frequently found in speleological publications. Caves: Processes, Development, and Management, Second Edition, is organised into four sections. In the first section, contemporary processes of cave formation are examined. The second section of the book deals with past processes and their physical manifestation. In the third section, the use of caves by various organisms from bacteria to humans is explored. The final section of the book reviews our changing approaches to cave management and to catchment management on karst terrains. The book will be of use to anyone who is interested in caves and karst, or who wants to understand about cave formation, development, values and management.

From the Aboriginal beginnings, early exploration and the building of such wonders as the Giant Stairway and the Scenic Railway, the famous buildings, writers and artists, including Bradman at Blackheath, the Chinese people and the pioneers. This book covers the history of all the towns over the mountains through to the Jenolan Caves.

Caves are exciting places to visit, whether you are a tourist, a sporting caver or a scientist in one of the many disciplines which use caves as natural laboratories. This book comprehensively reviews what we presently know about Australia's caves including the varieties of cave types and how they form, cave fauna, fossils, Aboriginal relics and decorations in caves, and a history of cave exploration and cave science in Australia.

Martin Thomas takes the reader on a journey through a compelling study of culture, landscape and mythology. For both Aboriginal people and their colonisers, the rugged landscape of the Blue Mountains has stood as an intriguing riddle and a stimulus to the imagination. The author evokes this dramatic and bewildering landscape and leads his readers through the cultural history of the locality in order to probe the 'dreamwork of imperialism'.

Shortlisted for the Tratman Award 2015 To enter caves is to venture beyond the realm of the everyday. From huge vaulted caverns to impassable, water-filled passages; from the karst topography of Guilin in China to the lava tubes of Hawaii; from tiny remote pilgrimage sites to massive tourism enterprises, caves are places of mystery. Dark spaces that remain largely unexplored, caves are astonishing wonders of nature and habitats for exotic flora and fauna. This book investigates the natural and cultural history of caves and considers the roles caves have played in the human imagination and experience of the natural world. It explores the long history of the human fascination with caves, across countries and continents, examining their dual role as spaces of both wonder and fear. It tells the tales of the adventurers who pioneered the science of caves and those of the explorers and cave-divers still searching for new, unmapped routes deep into the earth. This book explores the lure of the subterranean world by examining caving and cave tourism and by looking to the mythology, literature, and art of caves. This lavishly illustrated book will appeal to general readers and experts alike interested in the ecology and use of caves, or the extraordinary artistic responses earth’s dark recesses have evoked over the centuries.

Previous ed.: published by Evan McHugh, 1999.

Neville Agnew, senior principal project specialist at the GCI, is the author of numerous publications in research chemistry and conservation, including (with two coauthors) the book Cave Temples of Mogao: Art and History on the Silk Road. --Book Jacket.