The cave was discovered in 1951 by volunteer cavers from Rožňava (V. Rozložník, L. Herényi, Š. Roda, A. Abonyi, A. Rusňák, Š. Ivanec and others) associated with the Slovak speleological society. They penetrated into the underground spaces through the Black Boiler with the help of excavation work. Thanks to L. Herényi and his collaborators, the cave has been accessible since 1955. From 1968, as the first cave in Slovakia, it was used for 10 years for speleotherapy. The length of the accessible part of the cave is 285 m.
It was formed in Mesozoic Middle Triassic light Wetterstein limestones, dark gray Gutenstein limestones, light gray limestones and dolomitic limestones along tectonic faults by the corrosion and erosion activity of the Black Stream and its occasional tributary from Marble Hall. It is part of the Silicko-Gombase underground hydrological system, which also includes the Silická ľadnica cave. The two caves are separated by a hitherto unknown section of Čierne potok. It rises to the surface at the Black Boiler at the foot of the plain, 11 m above the valley plain of Slana.
Gombasecká jaskyňa is a 3057 m long river spring cave. The two floors consist of oval river-modeled and fissured corridors in places widened by rushing into halls and domes. The upper floor is 5 to 10 m above the active stream of Čierne Potok, which flows through the lower parts of the cave. The dry passage on the upper floor was created by the waters, which now occasionally rise through the 10 m deep well in the Marble Hall.
The cave stands out for its unique thin sinter straws – thin tubular stalactite formations that reach a length of up to 3 m. There are also other forms of stalactites, stalagmites, various sinter deposits and crusts. The air temperature in the cave reaches 9.0 to 9.4 °C, relative humidity 95 to 97%.
The discovery of a millipede of the genus Typhloiulus sp., which with a body length of 26 mm, represents the largest troglobiont to date - a true cave animal of Slovak caves. Bats are found in the cave only rarely in spring. In recent years, spotted salamanders (Salamandra salamandra) have been staying in the entrance hall from autumn to spring.
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