Microclimatic conditions in Shulgan-Tash Cave (Southern Ural, Russia): Implications for the preservation of Eastern Europe’s largest Paleolithic art collection

Authors

Olga Chervyatsova, “Shulgan-Tash” State Natural Biosphere Reserve, RussiaFollow
Rayan Akhmedyanovb, Historical and Cultural Museum-Reserve “Shulgan-Tash Cave”, Russia
Nailya Saifullina, “Shulgan-Tash” State Natural Biosphere Reserve, Russia
Ludmila Kuzmina, Ufa Institute of Biology of the Ufa Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, RussiaFollow
Mihael Kotov, Historical and Cultural Museum-Reserve “Shulgan-Tash Cave”, Russia
Yuri Dublyansky, Leopold-Franzens-Universität Innsbruck, AustriaFollow

Highlights

• Shulgan-Tash Cave exhibits distinct winter and summer ventilation regimes
• CO₂ concentrations: atmospheric in Lower Level, elevated in summer in Upper Level
• Elevated CO₂ levels in the Upper Level result from forest cover and phreatic degassing
• Key threats to cave art include condensation and fluctuating CO₂ levels in cave air
• Rapid degassing of infiltrating water leads to calcite deposition over cave paintings

Abstract

This study presents the results of a long-term investigation of the microclimatic conditions in Shulgan-Tash Cave (Southern Urals, Russia), which hosts the largest assemblage of Upper Paleolithic paintings (ca. 16.3–19.6 ka) in Eastern Europe. The cave exhibits two distinct seasonal ventilation regimes – winter and summer – differentially influence its two levels of galleries. In the Lower Level, which contains 83% of the images, near-atmospheric CO₂ concentrations persist year-round, and temperature variations associated with seasonal infiltration events are minimal (1.0–1.3°C). By contrast, the Upper Level, including the decorated Hall of Paintings, is affected by downdrafts of CO₂-rich air during summer, resulting in elevated concentrations (up to 0.2–0.3% vol.). These conditions reflect the position of this sector beneath a densely forested massif and the degassing of phreatic waters. The principal threats to the preservation of the cave art include: (i) summer condensation, mitigated by the use of air-circulation screens; (ii) cyclic CO₂ fluctuations, which drive alternating dissolution and degassing in water films on decorated walls; and (iii) rapid degassing of infiltrating waters, leading to calcite deposition over the paintings. These processes variably affect the decorated chambers, highlighting the need for site-specific conservation measures. Given the cave's recent inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List, these findings provide an essential basis for developing effective long-term preservation strategies for this unique cultural heritage site.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5038/1827-806X.ijs2561

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 License.

Recommended Citation

Chervyatsova, O.Y., Akhmedyanov, R.T., Saifullina, N.M., Kuzmina L.Y., Kotov, M.V., Dublyansky, Y., 2025. Microclimatic conditions in Shulgan-Tash Cave (Southern Ural, Russia): Implications for the preservation of Eastern Europe’s largest Paleolithic art collection. International Journal of Speleology, 54(3), ijs2561 https://doi.org/10.5038/1827-806X.ijs2561