Botanical Garden in Kielce – rock outcrop

The rock outcrop in the Botanical Garden in Kielce, located on the eastern slope of Karczówka mountain, was created as part of investment works carried out in connection with opening the eastern part of the Garden to tourists. The outcrop shows massive, weathered Upper Devonian limestones that are about 380 million years old and contain a rich fauna of fossils of sponges and corals documenting their shallow marine origin. The Botanical Garden site also exhibits interesting geological phenomena related to tectonics, mineralisation and karst. Numerous faults and fractures cutting through the limestone are filled with hydrothermal mineralisation in the form of veins and crystals of multicoloured calcite containing local inclusions of lead sulphide, i.e. galena. The south-western part of the Botanical Garden is interesting in that it has depressions which are reminders of old mining works related to the exploration and extraction of galena. During the land eras of the geological history of the Holy Cross Mountains region, the strongly fractured limestones were repeatedly subjected to karst processes. They are evidenced by numerous formations in the form of depressions, sink holes, wells and underground voids. The entrance hole to one of the underground corridors is also visible in the outcrop.