Cathedral - Luray Caverns
by Susan Rissi Tregoning
Title
Cathedral - Luray Caverns
Artist
Susan Rissi Tregoning
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
Oh, how I would have loved to have visited this huge chamber at Luray Caverns back in the day when it was full of women in hoop skirts and men in formal dress dancing to a local band! Now known as the Cathedral, it was once called the Ballroom and used for dances.
In the far corner of the room is The Great Stalacpipe Organ, which according to Guinness Book of World Records, is the largest musical instrument in the world. This organ uses the stalactites as tone sources. Rubber tipped mallets are electronically signaled to tap different sized stalactites, producing musical tones. As each stalactite vibrates, a magnetic pick-up transports the tone to the center of the chamber. Mallets cover 3 ½ acres of the caverns with the Cathedral room being the center. The organ invented by Leland Sprinkle from Springfield, Virginia, was completed in 1957 and is still operational. It can be played manually or like a player piano and is demonstrated during the tour.
Luray Caverns is the largest cave in the eastern United States. Located in the Shenandoah Valley town of Luray, Virginia, I consider it a must-see if you are visiting Shenandoah National Park. The cave was discovered in 1878 by five local men whose attention had been attracted by a protruding limestone outcropping located near a sinkhole that had cool air rising from it. Luray Caverns was designated as a Natural Landmark in 1974.
Copyright 2020 Susan Rissi Tregoning
Uploaded
August 20th, 2020
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Viewed 1,827 Times - Last Visitor from Seattle, WA on 04/19/2024 at 6:49 AM
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