Franz Kraus (cave explorer)

Franz Kraus 1876

Franz Kraus (born June 28, 1834 in Vienna ; † January 12, 1897 ) was an Austrian cave research pioneer .

biography

Franz Kraus learned a commercial profession, which he also practiced at first. After the death of his father in 1872, he continued to run his company for a short time, but soon withdrew into private life so that he could devote himself entirely to his scientific inclinations.

Franz Kraus initially dealt with mineralogy and geology and quickly acquired extensive specialist knowledge. In 1875 he became a member of the kk geographical society in Vienna, in 1876 co-founder of the scientific club, in 1878 a correspondent of the kk geological Reichsanstalt , where he took part in the reorganization of the institution's mineral collection under the guidance of Hofrat Franz von Hauer . During this time he dealt with caving for the first time, which then became his specialty.

Under his suggestion, an association for caving was founded as part of the scientific club in October 1879, which was affiliated to the Austrian Tourist Club in April 1881 . Starting from his Ischler summer residence led by Franz Kraus numerous cave trips, about which he wrote in the annals of the Austrian Tourist Club.

Kraus monument at the entrance to the Kraushöhle

In the summer of 1881 Kraus was in Eisenerz to explore the caves in the area. Especially the "Anerlbauerloch", a stalactite cave with gypsum deposits in the distress near Gams , aroused his interest. He formed a local committee to open the cave to the public. A short time later, he himself acquired ownership of the cave and made it accessible to tourists. The ceremonial opening of the cave and its first grotto festival took place as early as 1882. A year later, Kraus installed electrical lighting. The local community made Franz Kraus an honorary citizen and named the cave " Krausgrotte ".

At his suggestion, the Speleology Section of the Austrian Tourist Club prepared surveys of the peculiar water conditions in the Krain valleys , which were supposed to provide the basis for extensive renovation work in the Karst area . In 1885 a separate karst committee was founded, which immediately decided to research the upper part of the Poik run from the Poik cave ( Pivka Jama ) to the Adelsberg grotto in order to find the supposed connection between these cave systems. Kraus personally directed the work that began in the summer of 1885 in the Poik cave. Although the work had to be stopped because of early autumn floods, he was able to make interesting scientific observations. The kk agriculture ministry and the state government of Carniola started the continuation of the drainage projects in 1886.

In the 1890s, the discoveries in the Adelsberg Grotto and the research of the French speleologist EA Martel made a great impression on Kraus. In 1893 Martel managed to follow the course of the Poik from Adelsberg to the Poik cave and to prove Kraus's view that the Poik cave belonged to the Adelsberg grotto. Kraus reported on these events in numerous publications. In 1894 he published the work Höhlenkunde (ways and purpose of exploring underground spaces) , in which he summarized and systematically structured all his speleological knowledge.

Franz Kraus had been married to Louise Pfeiffer since 1863 and they had a daughter. On January 12, 1897, at the age of 63, he died of cancer.

Publications

• 1878: About caves , Neue Deutsche Alpenzeitung, Vol. VI, No. 22
• 1879: About alpine caves , yearbook of the Austrian. Tourist clubs, Vienna 1880
• 1881: New finds by Ursus Speläus in the Dachstein area , yearbook of the Imperial and Royal Geolog. Reichsanstalt, Vienna 1881, vol. 31, issue 4
• 1882: Ice cave in Beilstein in Styria , Austria. Tourist newspaper, 11th year. Book 10, Vienna 1883
• 1884: To research the Krainer Karst , Deutsche Rundschau f. Geography and Statistics, Vienna, born 1884–1885, Vol. 7, Issue 9
• 1885: Vom Innerkrainer Karst , Globus, Braunschweig 1885, vol. 47, no.2 4
• 1885: Caves in the Salzkammergut , communications from the Sekt. F. Speleology of the Austrian Tourist clubs, Vienna, Kleine Mitteil. No. 2, p. 26.
• 1887: About Dolinen , Gaea, Leipzig 1887, Vol. 23
• 1888: Karst phenomena , Globus, Braunschweig, 1888, Vol. 53, No. 10
• 1890: Karst research in France , Globus, Braunschweig, 1890, vol. 57, no.1
• 1891: Adelsberger Höhlen then and now , Petermanns Mitteilungen, Gotha 1891, vol. 37
• 1893: EA Martel's cave tours in Krain , Gaea, Leipzig, No. 19
• 1894: Speleology. Ways and purposes of exploring underground spaces , Vienna, Gerold 1894
• 1895: The Buschmann Cave near Krems , Gaea, Leipzig 1895, vol. 68, no. 6
• 1896: The deepest gullies of the Karst , Globus, Braunschweig 1896, Vol. 70, No. 3

swell

• Heinrich Salzer: Franz Kraus . In: Speleological Yearbook 15/17, 1934/36

Web links

Commons : Franz Kraus (speleologist)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files