Döppersberghöhlen

The Döppersberghöhlen were two small caves in Wuppertal’s city centre, lying south of the Wupper river beneath the former Reichsbahndirektion Elberfeld building. They formed in limestone lenses within the Upper Honsel strata, rocks from the late Middle Devonian period made of shale and greywacke with high calcium content. These layers often contain karstified zones where caves develop, and the Hardthöhlen system, one of the largest in the Rhineland, lies about 1.5 kilometres away. The caves were discovered in June 2015 during construction work when a construction team noticed an unexpected use of liquid concrete. Members of the Arbeitskreis Kluterthöhle e.V. were allowed onto the site and found two small caves. Döppersberghöhle I showed solution features but no stalactites and was recorded in the regional cave register. Döppersberghöhle II, found nearby at a lower level, contained clay that proved it flooded when the Wupper rose, suggesting it had once been longer and possibly connected to the first cave. After documentation in June 2015, both caves were destroyed by further construction. Before this discovery, no cave was known south of the Wupper except the Kluse Zwergenhöhle, which had been destroyed in the 19th century. The brief existence of the Döppersberghöhlen offered a rare glimpse into Wuppertal’s hidden underground world before it vanished beneath the rebuilt Döppersberg traffic hub.