Wildenmannlisloch (also ''Wildmannlisloch'', translating to "

wild man The wild man, wild man of the woods, woodwose or wodewose is a mythical figure and motif that appears in the art and literature of medieval Europe, comparable to the satyr or faun type in classical mythology and to ''Silvanus (mythology), Silvanu ...

's hole") is an alpine

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

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 the municipality of

Wildhaus-Alt St. Johann Wildhaus-Alt St. Johann is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the ''Wahlkreis'' (constituency) of Toggenburg (Wahlkreis), Toggenburg in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of St. Gallen (canton), St. Gallen in Switzerland. It was for ...

Toggenburg Toggenburg is a region of Switzerland. It corresponds to the upper valley of the River Thur (Switzerland), Thur and that of the Necker (river), Necker, one of its afluents. Since 1 January 2003, Toggenburg has been a constituency (''Wahlkreis ...

region,

canton of St. Gallen The canton of St. Gallen or St Gall ( ; ; ; ) is a canton of Switzerland. Its capital is St. Gallen. Located in northeastern Switzerland, the canton has an area of (5% of Switzerland) and a resident population close to half a million as of ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, on the northern slope of the

Churfirsten Churfirsten is a mountain range in the Canton of St. Gallen, Switzerland. They form the natural boundary between the canton's Toggenburg and Sarganserland districts. They are the southernmost range of the Appenzell Alps, separated from the ...

range (ca. 2 km due north of peak Selun) at an elevation of 1640 m. The cave extends for 142 m, at about 60 m from the entrance forming a chamber. The cave's name is recorded in 1819 a booklet on "

Zwingli Huldrych or Ulrich Zwingli (1 January 1484 – 11 October 1531) was a Swiss Christian theologian, musician, and leader of the Reformation in Switzerland. Born during a time of emerging Swiss patriotism and increasing criticism of the Swi ...

's birthplace" (''Zwinglis Geburtsort'', i.e.

Wildhaus Wildhaus (High Alemannic: ''Wildhuus'') is a village and former municipality in the Toggenburg region of the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland, since 2010 by merger with Alt St. Johann part of the municipality of Wildhaus-Alt St. Johann. T ...

) by J. Fr. Franz: "at the foot of Selun ridge there is a great cave, known as the wild man's hole, which at first is very broad and high, so that it could by entered by horse and wagon, then becomes narrower, and again wider, and in such alternation continues along various bends for a quarter of an hour before its end is reached."''An dem Fusse des Selunerrückens befindet sich eine grosse Höhle, das Wildenmannlisloch genannt, die anfangs sehr weit und hoch ist, so dass man mit Pferden und Wagen hineinfahren könnte, dann wieder verenget und wieder erweitert und in solchen Abwechslungen und verschiedenen Krümmungen sich eine Viertelstunde lang hinziehet, bis man ihr Ende erreicht.'' An examination of 15 July 1906 yielded bones of cave bears. A more detailed survey was conducted during 1923 to 1928 (published in Bächler 1934), producing a large number of bones, mostly of bears, besides a smaller number of

stone tools Stone tools have been used throughout human history but are most closely associated with prehistoric cultures and in particular those of the Stone Age. Stone tools may be made of either ground stone or knapped stone, the latter fashioned by a c ...

comparable to the

Wildkirchli Wildkirchli () are three interlinked caves situated in the Alpstein massif in the Appenzell Innerrhoden canton of Switzerland, north-east of Mount Säntis Switzerland. The caves are located at a height of . They are notable for the traces of Pale ...

finds. The bones seem to have been artificially deposited in heaps. The cave was presumably in use (either inhabited or used as a storage site for meat, or as a sacrificial site) by prehistoric man during the

Mousterian The Mousterian (or Mode III) is an Industry (archaeology), archaeological industry of Lithic technology, stone tools, associated primarily with the Neanderthals in Europe, and with the earliest anatomically modern humans in North Africa and We ...

(about 40,000 to 35,000 years ago). Johannes Seluner, a

feral child A feral child (also called wild child) is a young individual who has lived isolated from human contact from a very young age, with little or no experience of human care, social behavior, or language. Such children lack the basics of primary and ...

found in 1844, presumably lived in the cave during a number of years.

References

* *Emil Bächler, ''Das Wildenmannlisloch Am Selun'' (1934)
Aus der Geschichte von Alt St. Johann
(wildhaus-altstjohann.ch) {{Coord, 47, 10, 4, N, 9, 15, 19, E, display=title 1906 archaeological discoveries Caves of Switzerland Limestone caves Appenzell Alps Toggenburg Mousterian