Prohodna () is a

karst Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and Dolomite (rock), dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. Ther ...

cave in north central

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

, located in the

Iskar Gorge The Iskăr Gorge is a gorge passing through the Balkan Mountains (Stara Planina) in Bulgaria. It is the chief pass through the Balkans, which otherwise cross northern Bulgaria in a solid line. The pass connects the capital of Sofia with other major ...

near the village of

Karlukovo Karlukovo ( ) is a village in Lukovit Municipality, Lovech Province, northwestern Bulgaria. References

Villages in Lovech Province {{Lovech-geo-stub ...

Lukovit Municipality Lukovit Municipality () is a municipality ('' obshtina'') in Lovech Province, Central-North Bulgaria, located from the Fore-Balkan area to the southern parts of Danubian Plain. It is named after its administrative centre - the town of Lukovit. ...

Lovech Province Lovech Province (, former name Okrug, Lovech okrug) is one of the 28 provinces of Bulgaria, lying at the northern centre of the country. It is named after its main city: Lovech. As of December 2009, the population of the area was151,153.

. The cave is known for the two eye-like holes in its ceiling, known as God's eyes. Prohodna is the best known attraction in the Karlukovo Gorge (part of the Geological Park Iskar-Panega), one of the largest karst regions in Bulgaria and a popular location for

speleology Speleology () is the scientific study of caves and other karst features, as well as their chemical composition, composition, structure, physical property, physical properties, history, ecology, and the processes by which they form (speleogenes ...

. Formed during the

Quaternary The Quaternary ( ) is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS), as well as the current and most recent of the twelve periods of the ...

, Prohodna is long, which makes it the longest cave passage in Bulgaria. The cave has two entrances which lie opposite one another, known respectively as the Small Entrance and the Big Entrance. The former is high and the latter reaches in height. The cave owes its name, which literally means ''Thoroughfare Cave'' or ''Passage Cave'', to this feature. The size of the Big Entrance of Prohodna makes it suitable for bungee jumping, and it is among the popular spots in Bulgaria for that activity. There are traces of prehistoric habitation in the Prohodna cave, which testify that humans lived in the cave during the

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

and

Chalcolithic The Chalcolithic ( ) (also called the Copper Age and Eneolithic) was an archaeological period characterized by the increasing use of smelted copper. It followed the Neolithic and preceded the Bronze Age. It occurred at different periods in di ...

. Prohodna is most notable for the two equal-sized holes in the ceiling of its middle chamber. The holes, formed through

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as Surface runoff, water flow or wind) that removes soil, Rock (geology), rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust#Crust, Earth's crust and then sediment transport, tran ...

, let in light into the cave. The formation is popularly known as ''God's eyes''. The phenomenon was featured in the 1988 Bulgarian film ''

Time of Violence ''Time of Violence'' () is a 1988 Bulgarian film based on the novel '' Time of Parting'' by Anton Donchev. It consists of two episodes with a combined length of 288 minutes. It premiered at the 1988 Cannes Film Festival where it was screened in th ...

''; in the scene, a priest named Aligorko prays below the Eyes. The cave lies from Karlukovo, near the Karlukovo–

Lukovit Lukovit ( ) is a town in northern Bulgaria, part of Lovech Province. It is situated on both banks of the Zlatna Panega between the Danubian Plain and the foot of Stara Planina. As of December 2009, the town had a population of 9,630.Rumyantsevo, and there is a parking lot near the Small Entrance. Near Prohodna is the much longer cave Temnata Dupka, and a pathway from the Big Entrance of Prohodna leads to the Petar Tranteev National Caving House, one of the

100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria 100 Tourist Sites of Bulgaria is a Bulgarian national Social movement, movement established in 1966 to promote tourism among Bulgaria's most significant cultural, historic, and natural landmarks. As part of this program, sites of cultural and his ...

References

External links

Prohodna cave (Eyes of god) - Pictures

The eyes of God, Prohodna Caves
''Random-Times.com'' {{Lukovit Landforms of Lovech Province Caves of Bulgaria