The mighty Predjama Castle has stood in the middle of a 123-meter-high stone wall for more than 800 years. It is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest cave castle in the world.
It is also associated with the legend of robber knight Erazem Predjamski, who, after a dispute with Austrian emperor Frederick III, successfully resisted the besiegers of the castle for more than a year, until one of his servants betrayed him by lighting a candle in the window of Erazem’s room. This led his enemies to pelt him with stone bullets. Erazem’s grieving girlfriend is said to have buried his body in the centre of the village in front of the Church of the Sorrowful Mother of God, and planted a linden tree on it, which still stands there today and is known for its venerable age and hollow trunk.
Predjama Castle was first mentioned in 1274, when it was built by the abbots of Aquileia and was given a Gothic appearance. It was later rebuilt by new owners from the Luegg family, whose most famous representative is Erazem Predjamski. Predjama Castle is considered to be the only fully preserved cave castle in Europe, which, with its famous location, offers a unique insight into the construction techniques and ingenuity of the medieval people who sought refuge right next to the entrance to the cave.
This mighty castle has been the scene of numerous documentaries and feature films. Among them, the most prominent are the documentary-reality series of the members of Ghost Hunters International and the film Armor of God, in which the action movie hero Jackie Chan plays the leading role.
Inside the castle, you can see the renovated room of the main castle attic, in which many replicas of weapons from spears and halberds, to swords, warhammers, bows and crossbows, as well as armor are displayed.
In addition to visiting the world-famous castle, we also recommend visiting the cave under Predjama Castle, which is the second longest tourist cave in Slovenia, and the “Pri Stari dami” museum collection – it is a rich hunting collection and a collection of objects and weapons from the First World War, with an emphasis on the Isonzo Front.
The Treasure of Predjama
Did you know that the Predjama Castle hid a real treasure for several centuries until 1991? It consists of a small cup, three larger cups, a goblet with a lid, a goblet, a beaker with a windmill, a salt shaker and a candlestick. Ten objects of secular use are silver, covered with gold and richly decorated with plant motifs and other figures. In terms of shape and style, they belong to the last quarter of the 16th century and the beginning of the 17th century. The treasure find is available for visitors to see in the Notranjska museum Postojna.