History
70,000,000 B.C.
The Cretaceous Sea
It may be hard to imagine when walking through the cosy streets of Maastricht's city centre, but just under 70 million years ago, the area was knee-deep in water. Indeed, the shallow subtropical Cretaceous Sea covered all of southern Limburg at the time.
Remains - past
The Cretaceous Sea was teeming with plants and animals such as seagrasses, corals, fish, sharks and mosasaurs (or giant lizards). Over millions of years, the skeletons of these animals formed a thick package of limestone that was exposed when the Cretaceous Sea dried up. In the ENCI quarry and the caves in the Sint-Pietersberg (St. Pietersberg hill) nature reserve, the historic yellow limestone layers are still clearly visible. Would you like to see it with your own eyes? Then take a walk through the ENCI quarry or take a guided tour through the caves with an Official Maastricht Guide.
Out and about with a guide
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Guided tour of Caves North
Guided tour of Caves North
The Caves North, by block breakers with structure but carved into the marl, houses a special piece of history.
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Guided tour of Zonneberg caves
Guided tour of Zonneberg caves
Go along through an impressive labyrinth of metre-high long corridors and learn about the block mugs and artists who worked here.
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Group outing Steppentocht
Group outing Steppentocht
Discover the deepest secrets of the Sint-Pietersberg (St. Pietersberg hill) by scooter together with a Maastricht Underground guide.
ENCI quarry
Today, the ENCI quarry is considered industrial heritage and natural beauty in one. The Dutch cement company ENCI started quarrying on Sint-Pietersberg (St. Pietersberg hill) in 1926 to make cement from limestone. In 2019, marl mining stopped and then a unique landscape remained, which you can explore via a hiking trail. There is also a viewing platform at the ENCI quarry that gives you an enchanting view of the rugged chalk rock formations and - when the sun shines - azure puddles. From the viewing platform, you can descend into the quarry via a steel staircase.
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ENCI quarry
ENCI quarry
The ENCI quarry is a wonderful place to walk and enjoy all the beautiful plants and animals the area has to offer. More info on ENCI quarry
Mosasaurus Bèr
Among the millions of years of rock in the ENCI quarry, you might just make the find of a lifetime. In 1998, remains of the head and spine of mosasaur Bèr, known as the monster of Maastricht, were found. Bèr can be admired in Maastricht's Natural History Museum.
What does my ear hear?
Learn more about the ENCI quarry as a prehistoric mass grave and the above- and underground secrets of the Sint-Pietersberg (St. Pietersberg hill) with two short audio stories. If you really want to make the stories come alive, you can listen to them while walking through the Sint-Pietersberg (St. Pietersberg hill) (St. PSint-Pietersbergrgwalking through more than 70 million years of history here. Just stop and think about that!
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Listen to the podcast
Listen to the podcast
'Sint-Pietersberg (St. Pietersberg hill) and its secrets below and above ground'
History for kids
A golden tip for the kids: a visit to the Natural History Museum. Here you and your children will discover, among other things, what can be found in the soil and what this tells about earlier times when, for example, dinosaurs, mammoths and woolly rhinos lived. There are several exhibitions throughout the year that tie in with these kinds of topics.
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Natuurhistorisch Museum Maastricht
Natuurhistorisch Museum Maastricht
Take a journey through time, from the Stone Age and the Cretaceous Sea with the Mosasaurus to the animals living in Limburg today. More info on Natuurhistorisch Museum Maastricht
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More chalk, marl and lime
To Visit South LimburgWould you like to know even more about chalk, what is special about loess soil and everything related to it?
More history
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Middle Ages
Middle Ages
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Religious hotspot
Religious hotspot
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Garrison City
Garrison City
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World War II
World War II
