Features of Speleothems and Natural Heritage Value of Songam Cave, DPR Korea

Songam Cave, a magnificent dolomite cave in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea—is also known as “A Splendid Flower Cave”—is regarded as one of the renowned natural tourist attractions with a great number of beautiful and complicated aragonitic anthodites in different forms and shapes, together with diversified underground karst features (stalactite, stalagmite, limestone columns, flowstone, rimstone dams, botryoidal forms, pool spar, concretions, underground waterfall, ponds, etc.). This paper deals with the cave formation process, the features of speleothems and other karst features in Songam Cave, which indicate that Songam Cave is a geoheritage site of high conservation significance. The geological setting of the cave and the detailed features and diversity of the speleothems provide sufficient evidence to foster an understanding of the formation and development of the karst cave. The aragonitic anthodites and the outstanding underground karst features unfolded on the ceilings and walls throughout the cave suggest that Songam Cave can also be a cave tourist attraction of high aesthetic value. Overall, Songam Cave is a geoheritage of high conservative significance because of its geological and aesthetical value.