Badlands of Lazio, Italy

July 22, 2016

Civita di Bagnoregio (2)

July 2016 Viewer's ChoicePhotographer: Piero Armando
Summary Author: Piero Armando

Shown above are the badlands of the Lazio region in west-central Italy, north of Rome. These badlands (calanchi in Italian) are the result of severe erosion of clays that date from the Pliocene and deposits of volcanic ash, from the extinct Vulsini volcano. Various layers of this ash and clay are quite obvious in the cliffs seen in the bottom photo. Atop these cliffs, Etruscans first built the town of Civita di Bagnoregio more than 2,500 years ago.
 
Over the centuries, continuous landslides have eroded the cliffs, turning Civita into an island. Civita is now linked by a modern bridge (in foreground) to a new town and is today a famous tourist attraction. Photos taken on June 25, 2016.
 
Photo Details: Canon EOS 600D camera; 160mm focal length; ƒ/8 aperture; 1/1000 sec. exposure time; ISO 200.
 

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