The Blue Grotto or Blue Cave (

Croatian Croatian may refer to: * Croatia *Croatian language *Croatian people *Croatians (demonym) See also * * * Croatan (disambiguation) * Croatia (disambiguation) * Croatoan (disambiguation) * Hrvatski (disambiguation) * Hrvatsko (disambiguation) * S ...

: ''Modra špilja''), is a waterlogged

sea cave A sea cave, also known as a littoral cave, is a type of cave formed primarily by the wave action of the sea. The primary process involved is erosion. Sea caves are found throughout the world, actively forming along present coastlines and as reli ...

located in a small bay called Balun (''Ball'' in the local dialect), on the east side of the island of Biševo and about from

Komiža Komiža (; it, Comisa) is a Croatian coastal town lying on the western coast of the island of Vis in the central part of the Adriatic Sea. As of 2011 Komiža proper has a population of 1,397 while the entire municipality has 1,526 residents. Ko ...

, in the

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

n Adriatic. It is situated in the central

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see names in other languages) is one of the four historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of the Adriatic Sea, stre ...

n archipelago, 5 km south-west of the

island of Vis Vis (; ; la, Issa, it, Lissa) is a small Croatian island in the Adriatic Sea. It is the farthest inhabited island off the Croatian mainland. Before the end of World War I, the island was held by the Liburnians, the Republic of Venice, the Nap ...

. The grotto is one of the best known natural beauty spots on the Adriatic and a popular

show cave A show cave—also called tourist cave, public cave, and, in the United States, commercial cave—is a cave which has been made accessible to the public for guided visits. Definition A show cave is a cave that has been made accessible to ...

because of the glowing blue light that appears at certain times of day.

The grotto

First described and painted by Baron Eugen von Ransonet, the cave was originally accessible only by diving as it had one natural entrance below the sea level. Based on his suggestion, an artificial entrance large enough for small boats was built in 1884. The natural entrance to the cave, located on its southern side, is said to resemble a

vault Vault may refer to: * Jumping, the act of propelling oneself upwards Architecture * Vault (architecture), an arched form above an enclosed space * Bank vault, a reinforced room or compartment where valuables are stored * Burial vault (enclosure ...

on the ceiling of a grotto. It is through this submarine-like opening on the ceiling of the cave that sunlight gets in and creates an iridescent blue glowing effect all around the cave. As well, a stone bar, connecting two walls of the cave, is clearly visible just below the waterline, both in above-water photographs and in underwater photos. Depending on the season, the ideal moment to visit the cave is between 11 AM and 12 noon. At this time of day the sunlight reflects through the water coming from the white floor of the cave and bathes the grotto in aquamarine light, while objects in the water appear to be silver.Steve Davey, Marc Schlossman
''Unforgettable Islands to Escape to Before You Die''
pg. 110, Firefly Books (2007), The Blue Grotto (

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: ''Grotta Azzurra'') on the island of

Capri Capri ( , ; ; ) is an island located in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the Sorrento Peninsula, on the south side of the Gulf of Naples in the Campania region of Italy. The main town of Capri that is located on the island shares the name. It has bee ...

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is also famous for this type of phenomenon. The cave was formed by the wave action of the sea, as sea water eroded the

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms wh ...

rock of which the whole island of Biševo is composed. The cave itself is 24

meters The metre ( British spelling) or meter ( American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pr ...

long, 10–12 metres deep and up to 15 metres high, while the entrance to it measures 1.5 metres high and 2.5 metres wide. The cave receives more than 10,000 tourist visits every year, and tourist boats often include a visit to another similar cave on the island, the Zelena špilja (English: The Green Grotto), which is bigger in size and appears to be of an emerald-green tone due to a similar effect.

References

External links

Modra Špilja
at Show Caves of the World

at Dalmacija.net
Blue Cave Bisevo Island Croatia HD - 720p
on

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Blue Grotto (Bisevo) Caves of Croatia Sea caves Show caves in Croatia Grottoes Landforms of Split-Dalmatia County