Photograph
The Markov Chamber, Duhlata
This small chamber is filled with delicate soda straw stalactites hanging from the ceiling. Their fragile appearance gives the space an almost weightless character and reveals one of the earliest stages of cave decoration.
Beyond the frame
Soda straw stalactites are the first stage in the growth of many ordinary stalactites. Water flows through their hollow central tube, depositing calcite only at the tip. Once the tube becomes blocked, mineral layers begin to build up on the outside, gradually transforming the fragile straw into a thicker stalactite.
Collection
Underground stories