Incredible underwater images have revealed a spectacular village that sits at the bottom of a Bavarian lake.
In one shot an underwater church can be seen with seaweed tangled around the cross as the dilapidated tower stands almost destroyed in the misted background.
The hidden village lays 15 metres below the surface of the Ilsesee lake in Augsburg, Bavaria.
The former quarry had been flooded to create a diver’s underwater playground and structures designed to encourage the growth of algae and freshwater sponges, and saturating the building in vibrant green colours.
This makes it one of the cleanest lakes in Germany.
Ilsesee lake is divided into two sections, one is only open to certified divers and the other is for the underwater village.
Divers are only permitted into the village if they have undertaken an ecology course about the lake, as well as have undergone thorough checks by the staff at the dive base.
The focus of the village is to increase the health of the lake and spread knowledge about freshwater biology.
Divers are not allowed to touch the bottom of the lake as contact could affect the microorganisms and distribution of organic waste.
These images were taken by photographer, instructor, and diver Matej Miskovic from Krailling, Germany using a Sony RX100 VA camera.
“As an active diver, you have connections and hear about many places which are worth a visit. These buildings are rarely seen in pictures because the access is restricted by the dive base,” said the 38-year-old.
“After entering the lake at the dive base you have to swim about half an hour to the east with a compass, you come across great vegetation and see a lot of fish like Perches, Pikes and Carps, and also the underwater landscape is very fascinating with small mountains in a depth of round about eight meters.
“The hard thing is to get the whole church and a diver at one shot because of the visibility but I’m happy with the results.
“I like to show people the beauty of fresh and saltwater and try to get their interest for diving as a sport.
“The buildings aren’t big enough to dive inside, but it’s always worth to look inside through the doors or windows as there are usually fish are swimming around.”
