The Grotte was discovered in 1887 by Germain Rigaud, a shepherd from Saint-Remèze. When he first discovered the cave he had only a candle with which to regard the stunning discovery!
Here is a description of one of the first visitors, the senior officer of the French army.
"... at about 20 meters above the river, there is a roap wich brings us at the entrance of the cave. This cave is a big hole which was never explored. At first, we can see three big "rooms" with lot of columns; front of the entrance there are three little baths with lot of hangings, and just above us we can see a big "colonel épaulette". At the end, we can see a big column in pure calcite (calcium carbonate), it’s very white!! To come out, we are guided by the sunlight after three hours of visit..."