Ponte di Veja
| Ponte di Veja
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 The Ponte di Veja from the southwest |
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| Location: | Giare di Sant'Anna d'Alfaedo , Verona Province , Veneto , Italy | |
| Height : | 602 m slm | |
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Geographic location: |
45 ° 36 '29 " N , 10 ° 58' 12" E | |
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| Geology: | Layered, oolithic limestone | |
| Type: | Karst cave | |
| Particularities: | Collapsed | |
| Website: | Ponte di Veja - Lessinia | |
The Ponte di Veja ( German Bridge of the Veja ) is a rock gate located in the Italian Monti Lessini near Giare di Sant'Anna d'Alfaedo in Veneto .
topography
The Ponte di Veja was created around 120,000 to 80,000 years ago when a large karst cave collapsed, the entrance area of which remained as an arched rock formation. The dimensions of the former cave can still be guessed at the basin in the south-west of the bridge and the boulders from the cave ceiling. In a north-easterly direction, the Ponte di Veja opens up to the Valpantena valley . On this side the bridge has the clear dimensions of 29 meters high, 47 meters wide and 11 meters thick. On the opposite side of the bridge it is 24 meters high, 52 meters wide and 9 meters thick. The accessible part of the bridge is between 16 and 23 meters wide. Often referred to as the largest natural stone bridge in Europe, it is smaller than the Pont d'Arc in the Ardèche Valley in France .
Research history
In the immediate vicinity of the bridge there are several caves in which numerous excavations have been carried out since 1932 . The caves were named alphabetically in ascending order from Grotta A to Grotta E. With an age of around 100,000 years, the oldest finds come from the Moustérien , many of the stone artefacts and bone tools could be determined as belonging to the cultures of the Aurignacia and Epigravettia .
Trivia
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The Ponte di Veja is a much-visited natural attraction and a designated destination on the European long-distance hiking trail E5 .
In the 15th century, the Ponte di Veja inspired the painter Andrea Mantegna to design a fresco that he attached to the east wall in the magnificent bedroom ( Camera degli Sposi ) of the Palazzo Ducale in Mantua .
literature
- Mario Patuzzo: Il Ponte di Veja - Spettacolare formazione carsica nella lessinia occidentale. 2011, ISBN 978-88-95149-45-5 (Italian)
Web links
- Ponte di Veja - Lessinia , website of the Veneto region