A mark of history and legacy
The cave comes under the top 100 geological sites that were selected from 56 countries by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and now is an official International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) site as it is made out of the competition from many other sites.
The cave's stalagmite structures were the ones which eventually suggested its extremely long existence and also helped in determining that after the ice age around 4200 years ago, there was a 200-year-long drought that ended up destroying the civilizations but the cave stood still and survived as evidence of it.
This cave has a pool inside, formed by the culmination of five rivers, one-fourth of whose part is exposed to the sun. It is indeed an age-old marvel which now comes under the ‘First hundred IUGS geological sites in the world.’ It was a British officer Lieutenant Yule who found the cave in 1844 as he discovered India for treasures and active administration. Yule found the cave and little did he know in search of gold he had found a geological wonder of all time, and he should be thanked immensely for this huge discovery which is a legacy of not a country bit of the whole Earth.
The cave has its own stories associated with the Khasi tribe. Kreh is the word for a cave, and Mawmluh comes from a hamlet named after the cave. Some stories say that the cave is a safe shelter for spirits and elders of the tribe who also protect the cave while others believe that the cave has some sort of hidden treasure in it, eventually making it an important aspect for the tribe where they also worship and celebrate the spirits. And also celebrate this glorious creation of Mother Earth.
