Page 275 - Panjek, Aleksander, Jesper Larsson and Luca Mocarelli, eds. 2017. Integrated Peasant Economy in a Comparative Perspective: Alps, Scandinavia and Beyond. Koper: University of Primorska Press
P. 275
tourism as a source of non-agricultural rural income: the case of the karst
covered new parts of the cave and arranged paths for the visit of these new-
ly discovered parts.9 During the 19th century the community of Lokev ad-
ministrated the cave with the local church, as the key was kept and guiding
was provided in the local inn Muha. The innkeeper had kept the key since
1839 along with the guest book (Jamska knjiga). The owners of the inn ad-
ministrated the cave for a period10 and also arranged for the guiding ser-
vices; in fact members of the Muha family are also evidenced as guides
(Vencel and Viljem) in the guest book (Puc 2000, 31–2). In 1850 Kohl com-
plimented the guides in the Vilenica cave as: “knowledgeable guides, ready
to accompany us with the necessary lights” (Shaw 2008, 196). Neverthe-
less the popularity and the visits to the cave diminished throughout the
19th century.
In 1886 the Cave committee of the Italian Alpine Society (Società Al-
pina delle Giulie – Commissione delle grotte) acquired the lease of the cave
from the community of Lokev and soon began to arrange paths for easier
access and cave lighting. Eugenio Boegan, the secretary of the cave Com-
mittee of the Italian Alpine Society, described its glorious past and its mag-
nificent stony features, considering it as one of the most beautiful, most
visited, described and widely acclaimed caves in the past, that due to the
new discoveries that took place in Postojna, the recent ease of access to
Škocjan caves and the discovery of the Divača Cave fell into oblivion (Boe-
gan 1897, 10–6; Janša 1968, 30). Another negative factor was also ascribed
to road connections, since at the end of the 18th century the new state road
from Trieste to Vienna was redirected through other places (Puc 2000,
27).11 The Slovene newspaper Edinost of Trieste also regretted the lack of
visit: “In the centre of the cave there is a dance floor for festivities, which
are not organised anymore, and lately almost nobody visits the cave any-
more,” which was also attributed to the bad administration of the cave (Ed-
inost 13. 4. 1881, 2).
9 AST, CF, Elaborati, Sežana.
10 Other members of the community are mentioned as administrators of the cave, as
for instance the Lanthieri, which due to debts left the administration over the cave to
the Muha family.
11 The railway from the port to the capital, constructed in 1857, did not pass through
Lokev as the route passed through Divača. The once well-connected Vilenica, thanks
to the post road, was now set off the main routes and the distance from the Divača
station is supposed to have provoked a decrease in visits. However, similarly far from
the Divača station were also the Škocjan Caves, yet in this case distance did not seem
to affect the visiting. Reasons for the diminishing of popularity of Vilenica should be
traced within its management (see Kavrečič 2015c, 553).
273
covered new parts of the cave and arranged paths for the visit of these new-
ly discovered parts.9 During the 19th century the community of Lokev ad-
ministrated the cave with the local church, as the key was kept and guiding
was provided in the local inn Muha. The innkeeper had kept the key since
1839 along with the guest book (Jamska knjiga). The owners of the inn ad-
ministrated the cave for a period10 and also arranged for the guiding ser-
vices; in fact members of the Muha family are also evidenced as guides
(Vencel and Viljem) in the guest book (Puc 2000, 31–2). In 1850 Kohl com-
plimented the guides in the Vilenica cave as: “knowledgeable guides, ready
to accompany us with the necessary lights” (Shaw 2008, 196). Neverthe-
less the popularity and the visits to the cave diminished throughout the
19th century.
In 1886 the Cave committee of the Italian Alpine Society (Società Al-
pina delle Giulie – Commissione delle grotte) acquired the lease of the cave
from the community of Lokev and soon began to arrange paths for easier
access and cave lighting. Eugenio Boegan, the secretary of the cave Com-
mittee of the Italian Alpine Society, described its glorious past and its mag-
nificent stony features, considering it as one of the most beautiful, most
visited, described and widely acclaimed caves in the past, that due to the
new discoveries that took place in Postojna, the recent ease of access to
Škocjan caves and the discovery of the Divača Cave fell into oblivion (Boe-
gan 1897, 10–6; Janša 1968, 30). Another negative factor was also ascribed
to road connections, since at the end of the 18th century the new state road
from Trieste to Vienna was redirected through other places (Puc 2000,
27).11 The Slovene newspaper Edinost of Trieste also regretted the lack of
visit: “In the centre of the cave there is a dance floor for festivities, which
are not organised anymore, and lately almost nobody visits the cave any-
more,” which was also attributed to the bad administration of the cave (Ed-
inost 13. 4. 1881, 2).
9 AST, CF, Elaborati, Sežana.
10 Other members of the community are mentioned as administrators of the cave, as
for instance the Lanthieri, which due to debts left the administration over the cave to
the Muha family.
11 The railway from the port to the capital, constructed in 1857, did not pass through
Lokev as the route passed through Divača. The once well-connected Vilenica, thanks
to the post road, was now set off the main routes and the distance from the Divača
station is supposed to have provoked a decrease in visits. However, similarly far from
the Divača station were also the Škocjan Caves, yet in this case distance did not seem
to affect the visiting. Reasons for the diminishing of popularity of Vilenica should be
traced within its management (see Kavrečič 2015c, 553).
273
