The Earth and Man National Museum in the Bulgarian capital city of Sofia is the place where one can see “The Magic Light of Cave Minerals.” This is a photographic exhibition that presents phosphorescent formations in some of the most inaccessible caves in Bulgaria. The photos are the work of a team of photographers led by Krassimir Andonov - cinematographer and lecturer at NATFA and are part of his film project "Light and Cult", dedicated to the rock niches in the Eastern Rhodopes.

During his work on the project, Krassimir Andonov developed a method of photography, through which the photo-luminescence of the cave formations can be seen in a photo, revealing the beauty hidden in the impenetrable darkness of caves.

“The idea of the project is to try to unravel some of the secrets of the trapezoidal niches in the Eastern Rhodopes through visual means because over time we noticed that we see a little more than people who usually visit these places thanks to the specifics of our profession. ‘The magic light’ is a very interesting natural phenomenon, related to the fact that organic materials are deposited in cave formations by the natural cycle of water. Provoked by strong light, or under other influences, these deposits start to glow in the dark. Suddenly, the complete darkness comes to life in a soft greenish hue. This exhibition shows the world of caves in an unique way," Krassimir Andonov says.

In order to be able to capture this natural light the team had to look for the cleanest possible rock formations. They are usually situated in hard-to-reach caves that are protected from human influence. "The caves in which we shot our photos are located all across Bulgaria," Andonov says. Among them are the Rushova Cave and “Lyastovitsata” near Teteven, the “Sharaliyska” Cave in Pirin Mountain and Pepelyanka Cave near the village of Bosnek, close to Sofia. The choice of the specific locations was assigned to art expert and speleologist Ognyan Stoyanov.

“The scientific method we used serves to determine the age and composition of minerals. Different mineral compositions are colored in a different way. In this way our images are a snapshot of the state of waters and caves in Bulgaria,” he says.

The exhibition can be visited until November 28 in the Earth and Man National Museum in Sofia.

Compiled by: Vessela Krasteva /base on an interview by Alexander Raychev, BNR - "Hristo Botev"/

English: Alexander Markov