The cave:
The cave dates from the period 1808 to 1810 when Denmark was at war with England. The war meant a lack of many resources, which is why the Chamber of Finance granted 4000 Rigsdaler to attempt coal mining on Fur. The person responsible for the work was Bjergkandidat Mynster, who was assisted by the shaft workers Stiger Sunne and Holmboe, both from Segeberg Gibsbrud near Lübeck, and 10 workmen. Later, a supervisor from a disused silver mine near Kongsberg called Preus arrived with 4 Swedish prisoners of war. The work under Mynster’s leadership took place in four different places on the island. In three places they dug open shafts into the ground to a depth of 50-55 meters, but at Rødsten they first dug a gallery (mine passage) 110 meters into the slope and then at the end of the passage into a 50 meter deep shaft. Despite all the work, not a single trace of coal was found, so the shafts were abandoned and the passage sealed off.
The rediscovery:
But in 1895, after the winter, a discovery was made at Rødsten. An underground passage 3 cubits wide, extending 70 to 100 cubits into the slope and high enough for a man to walk upright. At the end of the passage it opened into a small cave with some plant in the middle. The memory of what had happened was a little faint, so there are stories of numerous Swedish prisoners of war escaping and stealing on the island.
Other interpretations of the cave’s existence link to ancient legends of trolls and outlaws.
Furthermore, King Frederik the 7th is believed to have had lunch in the innermost cave in the 1850s. Which is not impossible as Frederik the 7th and Countess Danner were sailing in the Limfjord in 1852, in connection with a visit to Skive on June 24, 1852.
Today, in 2025, the sea continues to gnaw away at the cliff, which takes its name from the long passage – the stolle that contributes to the erosion of the cliff.
The Swedish cave on the north coast of Furs is today called Stolleklint. The name “Stolle” means mine passage.
Fur local archive
Sources:
Fur Local Archive
Breiner Jensen, Magne; The Swedish cave on Fur. N. I.V. 1971.
Skivefolkeblad 6/5/1969
Skivefolkeblad 16/2/1934
Skivefolkeblad June 1895
Øst- vest Fuur best, A. C. nielsen 1953.
Christmas in Skive 23. year 1952
#Fur #Stolleklint #mining #prisoners of war #Countess Danner #Frederik 7.