1.
Porto Venere
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Porto Venere is a town and comune located on the Ligurian coast of Italy in the province of La Spezia. It comprises the three villages of Fezzano, Le Grazie and Porto Venere, and the three islands of Palmaria, Tino and Tinetto, in 1997 Porto Venere and the villages of Cinque Terre were designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The ancient Portus Veneris is believed to back to at least the middle of the 1st century BC. It has been said that the name refers to a temple to the goddess Venus which was sited on the promontory where the church of Peter the Apostle now stands, the name has also been linked to that of the hermit Saint Venerius. In Roman times the city was essentially a fishing community, after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, Porto Venere became the base of the Byzantine fleet in the northern Tyrrhenian Sea, but was destroyed by the Lombards in 643 AD. Later, it was a frequent target of Saracen raids, first indications of the existence of a castle date from 1113, and in 1161 the walls were erected. Porto Venere became a fiefdom of a family from Vezzano before passing to Genoa in the early 12th century, from 13 June 1805 to 1814 it was included in the Department of the Apennines. In 1815 it was incorporated in the Kingdom of Sardinia, according to the decisions of the Congress of Wien of 1814, the municipal Coat of arms was approved by the special decree of the Head of the Government dated 19 April 1933. In addition to the emblem and banner of the city is the cross of St and this objective is also mentioned in the municipal charter. The village lies at the end of a peninsula, which, breaking away from the jagged coastline of the Riviera di Levante. Bordered to the north by the municipality of La Spezia and south, is about 14 kilometres north of La Spezia and 117 kilometres east of Genoa. There is a system with the sewer grates and pumps that push the waste into a subsea pipeline that comes out to about 200 metres beyond the toe of St. Peter. The strong current and high depth of discharge, about 35 metres, the beaches of the area are tourist attraction. The climate is typically Mediterranean, with almost no heat in summer. However, rainfall can be abundant, especially in autumn and spring. In the municipal area, the station is located on Island of Palmaria, where data can be considered similar to those occurring in Porto Venere. The area of Portovenere-Palmaria Island is the point behind in the Ligurian Sea between the Isle of Elba and the islands of Hyères, France. Hence also the role in the history of seafaring
Porto Venere
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Panoramic view from
Lerici
Porto Venere
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UNESCO World Heritage Site
Porto Venere
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The War Memorial
Porto Venere
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Plaque dedicated to
Giuseppe Garibaldi
2.
Palmaria (island)
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Palmaria is an Italian island situated in the Ligurian Sea, at the westernmost end of the Gulf of La Spezia. Measuring 1.6 square kilometres, it is the largest island of an archipelago of three closely spaced islands jutting out south from the mainland at Portovenere, the other islands, Tino, and the tiny Tinetto lie further south. In 1997, the archipelago, together with Portovenere and the Cinque Terre, was designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, the Palmaria island with a surface area of 1. e. Towards the open sea, is characterized by high cliffs overhanging the water. The sides humanized see the presence of private homes, a restaurant and especially bathing establishments. As for the side, the most difficult to reach, are worthy of note the Blue Cave, visited by boat, and the Cave of Pigeons. Remarkable is the presence of a quarry, once used for the extraction of the precious black marble with streaks of gold portoro said. There are still remnants of cranes and hoists used for moving the blocks of marble, the flora of Palmaria is composed of about 500 species. Today the pines share space with typical Mediterranean species such as oak, oak, mastic, strawberry tree, the cysts, other important groups are the spot to plant spurge and nearest to the sea cliffs on those characterized by samphire. Among the new flora should be noted Centaurea cineraria veneris, Iberis umbellata var. linifolia, exclusive in Palmaria, Centaurea aplolepa lunensis, finally, also worth Brassica oleracea robertiana, Serapias neglecta and Cistus incanus, rare in Liguria, where it reaches its northern limit. In addition to the islands of Tino and Tinetto geconide this is present in few other sites in Liguria. Between the birds deserve to be mentioned the kestrel, peregrine falcon, sparrowhawk, the red partridge, gulls, between the mammals you mention the bats found in caves, the trunnion, the Greater Horseshoe Bat or greater horseshoe bat, the lower Horseshoe Bat. There are colonies of rabbits and goats, remains of a recent past when the island was inhabited more than now, between the invertebrates on the islands is to report the beetle Parmenas Solieri, an endemic species linked to the Tyrrhenian patch of spurge. The climate is typically Mediterranean, with a range, both daily and seasonal. For the maritime links is possible reach the island by boat or, in the summer months, with ferries that connect to Portovenere, Lerici
Palmaria (island)
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The Blue Cave
Palmaria (island)
Palmaria (island)
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The
marble caves
Palmaria (island)
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The vegetation
3.
Tino (island)
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Tino is an Italian island situated in the Ligurian Sea, at the westernmost end of the Gulf of La Spezia. It is part of an archipelago of three closely spaced islands jutting out south from the mainland at Portovenere, the largest of the three, Palmaria, lies to the north and the tiny Tinetto to the south. In 1997, the archipelago, together with Portovenere and the Cinque Terre, was designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The patron saint of the Gulf of La Spezia, Saint Venerius, is said to have lived in on the island as a hermit and his feast is celebrated here annually on 13 September. It is thought that a sanctuary was constructed at the place of Venerios death to contain his remains, the remains of the monastery can be seen on the northern coast of the island. Today the island, which is part of a zone, is surmounted by the San Venerio Lighthouse. Much of this article is based its equivalent in the Italian Wikipedia, Tino, further information on Saint Venerius from The Book of Saints, London, A & C Black,1989. Media related to Tino at Wikimedia Commons
Tino (island)
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UNESCO World Heritage Site
Tino (island)
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German Soldiers in 1944, during the Second World War
Tino (island)
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Palmaria and Tino from The Beach of San Terenzo
4.
World Heritage Site
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A World Heritage Site is a landmark which has been officially recognized by the United Nations, specifically by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Sites are selected on the basis of having cultural, historical, scientific or some form of significance. UNESCO regards these sites as being important to the interests of humanity. The programme catalogues, names, and conserves sites of outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common culture, under certain conditions, listed sites can obtain funds from the World Heritage Fund. The program was founded with the Convention Concerning the Protection of the Worlds Cultural and Natural Heritage, since then,192 state parties have ratified the convention, making it one of the most adhered to international instruments. As of July 2016,1052 sites are listed,814 cultural,203 natural, in 1959, the governments of Egypt and Sudan requested UNESCO to assist their countries to protect and rescue the endangered monuments and sites. In 1960, the Director-General of UNESCO launched an appeal to the Member States for an International Campaign to Save the Monuments of Nubia, the campaign, which ended in 1980, was considered a success. The project cost $80 million, about $40 million of which was collected from 50 countries, the projects success led to other safeguarding campaigns, saving Venice and its lagoon in Italy, the ruins of Mohenjo-daro in Pakistan, and the Borobodur Temple Compounds in Indonesia. UNESCO then initiated, with the International Council on Monuments and Sites, the United States initiated the idea of cultural conservation with nature conservation. The International Union for Conservation of Nature developed similar proposals in 1968, the Convention came into force on 17 December 1975. As of June 2016, it has been ratified by 192 states, including 188 UN member states plus the Cook Islands, the Holy See, Niue, a country must first list its significant cultural and natural sites, the result is called the Tentative List. A country may not nominate sites that have not been first included on the Tentative List, next, it can place sites selected from that list into a Nomination File. The Nomination File is evaluated by the International Council on Monuments and Sites and these bodies then make their recommendations to the World Heritage Committee. There are ten selection criteria – a site must meet at least one of them to be included on the list, up to 2004, there were six criteria for cultural heritage and four criteria for natural heritage. In 2005, this was modified so there is now only one set of ten criteria. Nominated sites must be of outstanding value and meet at least one of the ten criteria. Thus, the Geneva Convention treaty promulgates, Article 53, PROTECTION OF CULTURAL OBJECTS AND OF PLACES OF WORSHIP. There are 1,052 World Heritage Sites located in 165 States Party, of these,814 are cultural,203 are natural and 35 are mixed properties
World Heritage Site
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Site #252:
Taj Mahal, an example of cultural heritage site
World Heritage Site
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Logo of the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
World Heritage Committee
World Heritage Site
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Site #156:
Serengeti National Park, an example of natural heritage site
World Heritage Site
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Site #274:
Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu, an example of mixed heritage site
5.
Geographic coordinate system
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A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
Geographic coordinate system
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Longitude lines are perpendicular and latitude lines are parallel to the equator.
6.
Corniglia
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Corniglia is a frazione of the comune of Vernazza in the province of La Spezia, Liguria, northern Italy with a population of about 150. Unlike the other localities of the Cinque Terre, Corniglia is not directly adjacent to the sea, instead, it is on the top of a promontory about 100 metres high, surrounded on three sides by vineyards and terraces, the fourth side descends steeply to the sea. The village stretches along the road, Fieschi Road, and the houses have one side facing this road. Corniglia is characterised by narrow roads and a terrace in the rock from all other four Cinque Terres villages. Corniglia is mentioned in a novella of Giovanni Boccaccios Decameron. The origin of the dates back to the Roman Age as testified by the name, which finds its roots in Gens Cornelia. In the Middle Ages it was a possession of the counts of Lavagna, in 1254 Pope Innocent IV gave it to Nicolò Fieschi, who held it until 1276, when the village was acquired by the Republic of Genoa. Documents dating from 1276-77 mention the existence of a castle, however, remains of the castle have yet to be discovered and the location of the castle grounds is unknown. The only ruins in Corniglia belong to Genoese fortifications, a stronghold on a cliff plunging into the sea, Corniglia @ Cinque Terre Tourist Association Cinque Terre Pics Cinque Terre Slideshow -50 Pictures
Corniglia
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Panorama of Corniglia
Corniglia
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Corniglia's Marina
7.
Manarola
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Manarola is a small town, a frazione of the comune of Riomaggiore, in the province of La Spezia, Liguria, northern Italy. It is the second smallest of the famous Cinque Terre towns frequented by tourists, Manarola may be the oldest of the towns in the Cinque Terre, with the cornerstone of the church, San Lorenzo, dating from 1338. The local dialect is Manarolese, which is different from the dialects in the nearby area. The name Manarola is probably an evolution of the Latin. In the Manarolese dialect this was changed to magna roea which means large wheel, manarolas primary industries have traditionally been fishing and wine-making. The local wine, called Sciacchetrà, is renowned, references from Roman writings mention the high quality of the wine produced in the region. In recent years, Manarola and its neighboring towns have become popular tourist destinations, tourist attractions in the region include a famous walking trail between Manarola and Riomaggiore and hiking trails in the hills and vineyards above the town. Manarola is one of the five villages of the Cinque Terre, mostly all of the houses are bright and colourful. Manarola was celebrated in paintings by Antonio Discovolo, like its fello Cinque Terre town of Riomaggiore, it was featured in video game Forza Horizon 2. Riomaggiore Vernazza Monterosso al Mare Corniglia Virtual tour, Manarola Media related to Manarola at Wikimedia Commons Manarola photoblog
Manarola
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View of Manarola
Manarola
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Manarola's brightly colored buildings
Manarola
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Manarola village
8.
Monterosso al Mare
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Monterosso al Mare is a town and comune in the province of La Spezia, part of the region of Liguria. It is one of the five villages in Cinque Terre, Monterosso al Mare is located at the center of a small natural gulf, protected by a small artificial reef, to the east of Punta Mesco in the Riviera of La Spezia. It is the westernmost of the Cinque Terre, the local train station is located at Fegina and the beaches are relatively larger compared to the narrow cliffs that characterize the other villages of the Cinque Terre. The town is divided into two parts, the old town and the new town. The two areas are divided by a tunnel that caters to pedestrians and the very few cars in the town. The beach at Monterosso runs along most of the coast line and is used by tourists. The beach is the extensive sand beach in the Cinque Terre. Monterosso is a town overrun by tourists in the summer months. The village was excluded from the Cinque Terre trail in 1948. Italian officials considered the village too large to be considered part of the historic trail, the area is famous for its many lemon trees that can be seen throughout Monterosso. It is also renowned for its wines, grapes. In 1870, the Italian government built a line into the city. It is the way in which people enter the city. During World War II, many men from the Cinque Terre fought for the resistance against the fascist regime of Benito Mussolini. The Castle, partially ruined, built by the Genoese, the parish church of St. John the Baptist. Its façade features four small marble columns and a portal surmounted by a fresco portraying the baptism of Christ. The building is of a plan that includes a nave. The square medieval tower is crowned by merlons
Monterosso al Mare
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Monterosso al Mare
Monterosso al Mare
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Street in Moterosso village
Monterosso al Mare
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In the church
9.
Riomaggiore
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Riomaggiore is a village and comune in the province of La Spezia, situated in a small valley in the Liguria region of Italy. It is the first of the Cinque Terre one meets when travelling north from La Spezia, the village, dating from the early thirteenth century, is known for its historic character and its wine, produced by the towns vineyards. Riomaggiore is in the Riviera di Levante region and has shoreline on the Mediterraneans Gulf of Genoa, with a small beach, riomaggiores main street is Via Colombo, where numerous restaurants, bars and shops can be found. The Via dellAmore is a path connecting Riomaggiore to its frazione Manarola, Riomaggiore is the most southern village of the five Cinque Terre, all connected by trail. The water and mountainside have been declared national parks, Riomaggiore inspired paintings by Telemaco Signorini, one of the artists of the Macchiaioli group. Riomaggiore was featured in the 2014 driving video game Forza Horizon 2, the village was not featured as a main location but was referenced of various road signs. Liguria wine Welcome to Italy, Riomaggiore Virtual tour, Riomaggiore
Riomaggiore
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Riomaggiore Rimazùu
Riomaggiore
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Riomaggiore, the first village of the
Cinque Terre
Riomaggiore
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Houses on the rocks
Riomaggiore
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Riomaggiore, c.1895, by
Telemaco Signorini
10.
Vernazza
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Vernazza is a town and comune located in the province of La Spezia, Liguria, northwestern Italy. It is one of the five towns that make up the Cinque Terre region, Vernazza is the fourth town heading north, has no car traffic, and remains one of the truest fishing villages on the Italian Riviera. It is the natural port of Cinque Terre and is famous for its elegant houses. Vernazzas name is derived from the Latin adjective verna, meaning native, the aptly named indigenous wine, vernaccia, helped give birth to the villages moniker. The first records recognizing Vernazza as a town date to 1080. Referred to as a maritime base of the Obertenghi, a family of Italian nobility. Over the next two centuries, Vernazza was vital in Genovas conquest of Liguria, providing port, fleet, in 1209, approximately 90 of the most powerful families of Vernazza pledged their allegiance to the republic of Genova. The first documented presence of a church dates to 1251, with the parish of San Pietro cited in 1267, reference to the Church of Santa Margherita dAntiochia of Vernazza occurs in 1318. The Church of Santa Margherita dAntiochia was expanded upon and renovated over the course of the 16th and 17th centuries, in the 15th century, Vernazza focused its defence against the dreadful and regularly occurring pirate raids, erecting a fortifying wall. In the 19th century, after a period of stagnation, Vernazza returned to wine production. The result was a revitalisation of Vernazzas commerce, also at this time, the construction of the Genova–La Spezia rail line began, putting an end to Vernazzas long isolation. The population of Vernazza increased by 60% as a result, meanwhile, the construction of La Spezias naval base also proved important to Vernazza in providing employment for many members of the community. In 1997, the Cinque Terre was recognised as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, today the main source of revenue for Vernazza is tourism. However, as a testimony to the strength of centuries-old tradition, fishing, wine, the town was evacuated and remained in a state of emergency for many months. Church of Santa Margherita dAntiochia, c, unique for its east-facing entryway, it has a nave and two aisles, with an octagonal bell tower rising from the apse area, and is located in the towns main square Piazza Marconi. Doria Castle - built in the 15th century as a tower to protect the village from pirates. Sanctuary of Madonna di Reggio Santuario di Nostra Signora di Reggio, the path that leads up to the sanctuary is punctuated with the Stations of the Cross. The surrounding property of the sanctuary contains a large open area, expansive views of the hillside vineyards
Vernazza
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Vernazza
Vernazza
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View from the South
Vernazza
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Panorama
Vernazza
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View from the harbor wall
11.
Liguria
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Liguria is a coastal region of north-western Italy, its capital is Genoa. The region is popular with tourists for its beaches, towns, Liguria is bordered by France to the west, Piedmont to the north, and Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany to the east. It lies on the Ligurian Sea, the narrow strip of land is bordered by the sea, the Alps and the Apennines mountains. Some mountains rise above 2,000 m, the line runs at an average altitude of about 1,000 m. The highest point of the region is the summit of Monte Saccarello, the winding arched extension goes from Ventimiglia to La Spezia. Of this,3,524.08 km2 are mountainous and 891.95 km2 are hills, Ligurias natural reserves cover 12% of the entire region, or 600 km2 of land. They are made up of one national reserve, six large parks, the continental shelf is very narrow, and so steep it descends almost immediately to considerable marine depths along its 350-kilometre coastline. Except for the Portovenere and Portofino promontories, it is not very jagged. At the mouths of the biggest watercourses there are small beaches, the ring of hills lying immediately beyond the coast together with the sea account for a mild climate year-round. Average winter temperatures are 7 to 10 °C and summer temperatures are 23 to 24 °C, rainfall can be abundant at times, as mountains very close to the coast create an orographic effect. Genoa and La Spezia can see up to 2,000 mm of rain in a year, evidence of Neanderthals living in the area was discovered in the region of Loano, whereas in Ventimiglia, in the grotto of Balzi Rossi, numerous remains were found of Cro-Magnon. According to Classical sources, the Ligurians, once lived in a far broader territory than present-day Liguria, for example, the Greek colony of Massalia, modern Marseille was recorded to lie in Ligurian territory. During the first Punic War, the ancient Ligurians were divided, some of them siding with Carthage, under Augustus, Liguria was designated a region of Italy stretching from the coast to the banks of the Po River. The great Roman roads helped strengthen territorial unity and increase communication, important towns developed on the coast, of which evidence is left in the ruins of Albenga, Ventimiglia and Luni. Between the 4th and the 10th centuries Liguria was dominated by the Byzantines, the Lombards of King Rothari and it was also invaded by Saracen and Norman raiders. In the 10th century, once the danger of pirates decreased, in the 11th and 12th centuries the marches were split into fees, and then with the strengthening of the bishops’ power, the feudal structure began to partially weaken. The main Ligurian towns, especially on the coast, became city-states, inland, however, fiefs belonging to noble families survived for a very long time. Between the 11th century and the 15th century, the Republic of Genoa experienced a political and commercial success
Liguria
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A view of
Cinque Terre.
Liguria
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Liguria
Liguria
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The Roman amphitheatre of
Luni (1st century AD).
Liguria
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Simonetta Vespucci, a native Ligurian who was a famous beauty during the Renaissance, may have been the model for
Botticelli's The Birth of Venus
12.
La Spezia
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La Spezia, at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the Liguria region of Northern Italy is the capital city of the province of La Spezia. In terms of population, La Spezia is the city in the Liguria region. Located midway between Genoa and Pisa on the Ligurian Sea, it is one of the main Italian military and commercial harbours and it is important for its museums, for the Palio del Golfo, and for the railway and boat links with Cinque Terre. The area of La Spezia has been settled since pre-historic times, in Roman times the most important centre was Luni, now located in the vicinity of Sarzana. In fact, this Ligurian influence still is visible in the layout as well as in the types of buildings. La Spezia developed substantially after 1861 when the naval arsenal there was commissioned by the Royal government. In September 1943 after the Italian capitulation to the Allies, it was the port for the Italian Navy when it was ordered to steam into British hands at Malta. The Germans arrived too late to stop the departure of the fleet and it was sunk in the harbour in La Spezia in 1944. After the liberation, La Spezia became the point of departure for the survivors from the Nazi concentration camps, from the summer of 1945 to the spring of 1948 more than 23,000 Jewish displaced persons managed to leave Italy clandestinely for Mandate Palestine. After lengthy vicissitudes, the ships Fede, Fenice, and Komemiut managed to evacuate everyone from the Spezia gulf, to the point that on Israeli geographical maps, cristo Re dei Secoli, consecrated in 1975. The project was by Adalberto Libera, abbey church of Santa Maria Assunta. It houses a series of artworks, some of them coming from other suppressed religious institutes. They include an Incoronation of the Virgin by Andrea della Robbia and it has a single nave with eighteenth and nineteenth century decorations. Built in 1900 in the heart of the working-class neighborhood Quartiere Umbertino, in 1273 the Genoese destroyed it, and a new fortification, along with a new line of walls, was erected by the podesteria of La Spezia from 1371. Annexed to this edifice, the Republic of Genoa added a new castle starting from 1607, public Gardens Art Nouveau–style villas Futurist mosaic by Prampolini inside the Post Office La Spezia is a point of departure for the Cinque Terre, either by train or boat. The boat also serves Lerici and Portovenere before turning into the sea toward the Cinque Terre. These localities are accessible by transport,15 kilometres from the central railway station of the city. La Spezia has a humid subtropical and Mediterranean climate, since only one month receives less than 40 millimetres
La Spezia
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Panorama of La Spezia
La Spezia
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Map of La Spezia (German, late 19th-century)
La Spezia
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The Church Our Lady of the Assumption, thirteenth century
La Spezia
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St. George Castle
13.
Parco Nazionale delle Cinque Terre
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The Cinque Terre National Park is a protected area inducted as Italys first national park in 1999. Located in the province of La Spezia, Liguria, northern Italy, it is the smallest national park in Italy at 4,300 acres, but also the densest with 5,000 permanent inhabitants among the five towns. In addition to the territory of the towns of Cinque Terre, Cinque Terre was included as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. The collection of five towns on the Ligurian Coast linked by a series of trails highlights a delicate relationship between man and the environment. The Cinque Terre National Park was established on October 6,1999 in recognition of the territorys considerable scenic, agricultural, historical and cultural value. The five medieval towns along the Ligurian Coast provide scenic views of rugged terrain reeled in with terraced stone walls and that relationship has led to a dual existence, focused on both land and sea. For more than a thousand years, man has cut the steep slopes for terrace farming, the beauty of Cinque Terre lies not in a pristine environment void of man, but rather the interplay of the two. While there is concern for the environmental effects of such numbers of visitors, tourism is essential. Even though the Mediterranean flora have obvious features, there are many microclimates often different from each other created a huge variety of landscapes. There are pine, Aleppo pine, corks and chestnut, rock and coastal environments produce numerous Mediterranean species such as samphire and sea cineraria. Flora is visible even as shrub rosemary, thyme, helichrysum. Also present are several species of trees and succulents clearly visible from many trails, the environment is conducive to the development of life and habitat of several animal species. Among the birds are the gull, the falcon and the raven. Among the mammals are the dormouse, weasel, mole, badger, marten, fox, one of greatest threats to the Cinque Terre region and one the National Park works to address, is land degradation. Today, a percentage of cultural heritage sites are classified by governmental authorities as exposed to landslide risk. In Italy in particular, whose terrain is 75% mountainous or hilly, 13/36 of heritage sites are affected by slope instability problems, the landslide activity of a region can be attributed to many factors. According to GNDCI, most current landslides in the Apennines are recently dormant, while this explanation links the problem more to environmental and geological factors, mankind also plays a large role in the problem. Relevantly to Cinque Terre, changes in use and agricultural practices have drastic effects on landslides
Parco Nazionale delle Cinque Terre
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Agriculture in the park
Parco Nazionale delle Cinque Terre
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Characteristic Coastal Stretch of Cinque Terre.
Parco Nazionale delle Cinque Terre
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View Of Vernazza.
14.
UNESCO
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The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations based in Paris. It is the heir of the League of Nations International Committee on Intellectual Cooperation, UNESCO has 195 member states and nine associate members. Most of its offices are cluster offices covering three or more countries, national and regional offices also exist. UNESCO pursues its objectives through five major programs, education, natural sciences, social/human sciences, culture and it is also a member of the United Nations Development Group. UNESCO and its mandate for international cooperation can be traced back to a League of Nations resolution on 21 September 1921, on 18 December 1925, the International Bureau of Education began work as a non-governmental organization in the service of international educational development. However, the work of predecessor organizations was largely interrupted by the onset of World War II. On 30 October 1943, the necessity for an organization was expressed in the Moscow Declaration, agreed upon by China, the United Kingdom, the United States. This was followed by the Dumbarton Oaks Conference proposals of 9 October 1944, a prominent figure in the initiative for UNESCO was Rab Butler, the Minister of Education for the United Kingdom. At the ECO/CONF, the Constitution of UNESCO was introduced and signed by 37 countries, the Preparatory Commission operated between 16 November 1945, and 4 November 1946—the date when UNESCOs Constitution came into force with the deposit of the twentieth ratification by a member state. The first General Conference took place between 19 November to 10 December 1946, and elected Dr. Julian Huxley to Director-General and this change in governance distinguished UNESCO from its predecessor, the CICI, in how member states would work together in the organizations fields of competence. In 1956, the Republic of South Africa withdrew from UNESCO claiming that some of the organizations publications amounted to interference in the racial problems. South Africa rejoined the organization in 1994 under the leadership of Nelson Mandela, UNESCOs early work in the field of education included the pilot project on fundamental education in the Marbial Valley, Haiti, started in 1947. This project was followed by missions to other countries, including, for example. In 1948, UNESCO recommended that Member States should make free primary education compulsory, in 1990, the World Conference on Education for All, in Jomtien, Thailand, launched a global movement to provide basic education for all children, youths and adults. Ten years later, the 2000 World Education Forum held in Dakar, Senegal, UNESCOs early activities in culture included, for example, the Nubia Campaign, launched in 1960. The purpose of the campaign was to move the Great Temple of Abu Simbel to keep it from being swamped by the Nile after construction of the Aswan Dam, during the 20-year campaign,22 monuments and architectural complexes were relocated. This was the first and largest in a series of campaigns including Mohenjo-daro, Fes, Kathmandu, Borobudur, the organizations work on heritage led to the adoption, in 1972, of the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage. The World Heritage Committee was established in 1976 and the first sites inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1978, since then important legal instruments on cultural heritage and diversity have been adopted by UNESCO member states in 2003 and 2005
UNESCO
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UNESCO offices in
Brasília
UNESCO
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UNESCO
UNESCO
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UNESCO Institute for Water Education in
Delft
UNESCO
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The Garden of Peace, UNESCO headquarters, Paris. Donated by the Government of Japan, this garden was designed by American-Japanese sculptor artist Isamu Noguchi in 1958 and installed by Japanese gardener Toemon Sano.
15.
Terrace (agriculture)
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This type of landscaping, therefore, is called terracing. Graduated terrace steps are used to farm on hilly or mountainous terrain. Terraced fields decrease both erosion and surface runoff, and may be used to growing crops that require irrigation. The Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras have been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site because of the significance of this technique, terraced paddy fields are used widely in rice, wheat and barley farming in east, south, and southeast Asia, as well as other places. In the South American Andes, farmers have used terraces, known as andenes, for over a years to farm potatoes, maize. Terraced farming was developed by the Wari and other peoples of the south-central Andes before 1000 AD, centuries before they were used by the Inca, the terraces were built to make the most efficient use of shallow soil and to enable irrigation of crops. The Inca built on these, developing a system of canals, aqueducts and these terraced farms are found wherever mountain villages have existed in the Andes. They provided the necessary to support the populations of great Inca cities. Terracing is also used for sloping terrain, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon may have built on an artificial mountain with stepped terraces. At the seaside Villa of the Papyri in Herculaneum, the gardens of Julius Caesars father-in-law were designed in terraces to give pleasant. Terraced fields are common in islands with steep slopes, the Canary Islands present a complex system of terraces covering the landscape from the coastal irrigated plantations to the dry fields in the highlands. These terraces, which are named cadenas, are built with walls of skillful design. In Old English, a terrace was also called a lynch, an example of an ancient Lynch Mill is in Lyme Regis. The water is directed from a river by a duct along a terrace and this set-up was used in steep hilly areas in the UK. Anden Banaue Rice Terraces Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras Satoyama Terrace garden Terrace Fields around the World
Terrace (agriculture)
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Tetang Village terraced fields,
Mustang District
Terrace (agriculture)
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Diagram showing Inca terrace engineering for agriculture.
Terrace (agriculture)
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Terraced field in Kabal
Swat valley
Terrace (agriculture)
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Terraced farmland in Peru, adopted by the Inca.
16.
Republic of Genoa
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It began when Genoa became a self-governing commune within the Regnum Italicum, and ended when it was conquered by the French First Republic under Napoleon and replaced with the Ligurian Republic. Corsica was ceded to France in the Treaty of Versailles of 1768, before 1100, Genoa emerged as an independent city-state, one of a number of Italian city-states during this period. Nominally, the Holy Roman Emperor was overlord and the Bishop of Genoa was president of the city, however, actual power was wielded by a number of consuls annually elected by popular assembly. The Adorno, Campofregoso, and other merchant families all fought for power in this Republic, as the power of the consuls allowed each family faction to gain wealth. The Republic of Genoa extended over modern Liguria and Piedmont, Sardinia, Corsica, through Genoese participation on the Crusades, Genoese colonies were established in the Middle East, in the Aegean, in Sicily and Northern Africa. The collapse of the Crusader States was offset by Genoa’s alliance with the Byzantine Empire, as Venices relations with the Byzantine Empire were temporarily disrupted by the Fourth Crusade and its aftermath, Genoa was able to improve its position. Genoa took advantage of opportunity to expand into the Black Sea and Crimea. Internal feuds between the families, the Grimaldi and Fieschi, the Doria, Spinola, and others caused much disruption. However, this prosperity did not last, the Black Death was imported into Europe in 1347 from the Genoese trading post at Caffa in Crimea, on the Black Sea. Following the economic and population collapse, Genoa adopted the Venetian model of government, the wars with Venice continued, and the War of Chioggia -- where Genoa almost managed to decisively subdue Venice—ended with Venices recovery of dominance in the Adriatic. In 1390 Genoa initiated a crusade against the Barbary pirates with help from the French, though it has not been well-studied, the fifteenth century seems to have been a tumultuous time for Genoa. After a period of French domination from 1394–1409, Genoa came under rule by the Visconti of Milan, Genoa lost Sardinia to Aragon, Corsica to internal revolt and its Middle Eastern, Eastern European and Asia Minor colonies to the Turkish Ottoman Empire. Under the ensuing economic recovery, many aristocratic Genoese families, such as the Balbi, Doria, Grimaldi, Pallavicini, according to Felipe Fernandez-Armesto and others, the practices Genoa developed in the Mediterranean were crucial in the exploration and exploitation of the New World. At the time of Genoa’s peak in the 16th century, the city attracted many artists, including Rubens, Caravaggio and Van Dyck. The architect Galeazzo Alessi designed many of the city’s splendid palazzi, as did in the decades that followed by fifty years Bartolomeo Bianco, a number of Genoese Baroque and Rococo artists settled elsewhere and a number of local artists became prominent. At the time of its founding in the early 11th century the Republic of Genoa consisted of the city of Genoa, as the commerce of the city increased, so did the territory of the Republic. By 1015 all of Liguria fell under the Republic of Genoa, after the First Crusade in 1098 Genoa gained settlements in Syria. In 1261 the city of Smyrna in Asia Minor became Genoese territory, in 1255 Genoa established the colony of Caffa in Crimea
Republic of Genoa
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View of Genoa and its fleet by Christoforo de Grassi (1597 copy, after a drawing of 1481); Galata Museo del Mare, Genoa.
Republic of Genoa
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Flag
Republic of Genoa
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Siege of
Antioch, 1098
Republic of Genoa
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Galata Tower (1348) in
Galata,
Istanbul.
17.
Ottoman Empire
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After 1354, the Ottomans crossed into Europe, and with the conquest of the Balkans the Ottoman Beylik was transformed into a transcontinental empire. The Ottomans ended the Byzantine Empire with the 1453 conquest of Constantinople by Mehmed the Conqueror, at the beginning of the 17th century the empire contained 32 provinces and numerous vassal states. Some of these were later absorbed into the Ottoman Empire, while others were granted various types of autonomy during the course of centuries. With Constantinople as its capital and control of lands around the Mediterranean basin, while the empire was once thought to have entered a period of decline following the death of Suleiman the Magnificent, this view is no longer supported by the majority of academic historians. The empire continued to maintain a flexible and strong economy, society, however, during a long period of peace from 1740 to 1768, the Ottoman military system fell behind that of their European rivals, the Habsburg and Russian Empires. While the Empire was able to hold its own during the conflict, it was struggling with internal dissent. Starting before World War I, but growing increasingly common and violent during it, major atrocities were committed by the Ottoman government against the Armenians, Assyrians and Pontic Greeks. The word Ottoman is an anglicisation of the name of Osman I. Osmans name in turn was the Turkish form of the Arabic name ʿUthmān, in Ottoman Turkish, the empire was referred to as Devlet-i ʿAlīye-yi ʿOsmānīye, or alternatively ʿOsmānlı Devleti. In Modern Turkish, it is known as Osmanlı İmparatorluğu or Osmanlı Devleti, the Turkish word for Ottoman originally referred to the tribal followers of Osman in the fourteenth century, and subsequently came to be used to refer to the empires military-administrative elite. In contrast, the term Turk was used to refer to the Anatolian peasant and tribal population, the term Rūmī was also used to refer to Turkish-speakers by the other Muslim peoples of the empire and beyond. In Western Europe, the two names Ottoman Empire and Turkey were often used interchangeably, with Turkey being increasingly favored both in formal and informal situations and this dichotomy was officially ended in 1920–23, when the newly established Ankara-based Turkish government chose Turkey as the sole official name. Most scholarly historians avoid the terms Turkey, Turks, and Turkish when referring to the Ottomans, as the power of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum declined in the 13th century, Anatolia was divided into a patchwork of independent Turkish principalities known as the Anatolian Beyliks. One of these beyliks, in the region of Bithynia on the frontier of the Byzantine Empire, was led by the Turkish tribal leader Osman, osmans early followers consisted both of Turkish tribal groups and Byzantine renegades, many but not all converts to Islam. Osman extended the control of his principality by conquering Byzantine towns along the Sakarya River and it is not well understood how the early Ottomans came to dominate their neighbours, due to the scarcity of the sources which survive from this period. One school of thought which was popular during the twentieth century argued that the Ottomans achieved success by rallying religious warriors to fight for them in the name of Islam, in the century after the death of Osman I, Ottoman rule began to extend over Anatolia and the Balkans. Osmans son, Orhan, captured the northwestern Anatolian city of Bursa in 1326 and this conquest meant the loss of Byzantine control over northwestern Anatolia. The important city of Thessaloniki was captured from the Venetians in 1387, the Ottoman victory at Kosovo in 1389 effectively marked the end of Serbian power in the region, paving the way for Ottoman expansion into Europe
Ottoman Empire
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Battle of Nicopolis in 1396. Painting from 1523.
Ottoman Empire
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Flag (1844–1923)
Ottoman Empire
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Battle of Mohács in 1526
Ottoman Empire
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Barbarossa Hayreddin Pasha defeats the
Holy League of
Charles V under the command of
Andrea Doria at the
Battle of Preveza in 1538.
18.
Levanto, Liguria
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Levanto is a comune in the province of La Spezia in the Italian region Liguria, located about 60 kilometres southeast of Genoa and about 20 kilometres northwest of La Spezia. The town is on the coast at the end of a valley, thickly wooded with olive, the ridges on either side of the valley thrust out into the sea as the headlands of Mesco and Levanto. The municipality forms part of the district known as the Comunità Montana della Riviera Spezzina. In Roman times there was already a settlement by the name of Ceula on the hills. This constituted an important nodal point due to its location, at the beginning of the 9th century, the bell tower of the present church, the Chiesa di San Siro, served as a watchtower and as a defence against dangers from the sea. From the 13th century, however, the importance of the area began to decline – this to the advantage of Levanto itself, Levanto first became the feudal stronghold of the Malaspina, before passing to the Da Passano and then, in 1229, to the Republic of Genoa. In the Middle Ages, the became a centre of commercial activity, benefiting from maritime and overland communications. In the post-Medieval period, the village saw major development with the construction of the Borgo Nuovo or Stagno on the plain of the Ghiararo and this survives today and is characterised by interesting 17th and 18th century buildings. A further phase of development took place at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries with the opening of two thoroughfares, the present Corso Italia and Corso Roma. From 1950, the village experienced further growth culminating during the 1970s in the present townscape, medieval castle, built to defend the village and still in a state of perfect conservation. An example of 13th century Ligurian Gothic style with its façade decorated in black and white bands, the chalice of emperor Henry VII is one of its treasures, and displayed only on special occasions such as the festival of the patron saint. Church of Santa Maria della Costa Villa Agnelli and its gardens were landscaped at the beginning of the 20th century. Piazza della Loggia, characterized by a 13th-century loggia, which in 2007 received from UNESCO the title of monument being evidence of culture, piazza Cavour, in earlier times the inner courtyard of the Monastero delle Ordine di Santa Chiara. The town hall, the library and other municipal offices are accommodated under its portico. Permanent exhibition of cultural artifacts Festival Massimo Amfiteatrof, classical and chamber music festival dedicated to Russian born cellist Massimo Amfiteatrof, Festa di San Giacomo and Festa del Mare. Festa di Nostra Signora della Guardia Traditional band concert, Festa Madonna del Soccorso 1–2 July in Fontona Official website
Levanto, Liguria
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Levanto
Levanto, Liguria
19.
Bonassola
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Bonassola is a comune in the Province of La Spezia in the Italian region Liguria, located about 60 kilometres southeast of Genoa and about 20 kilometres northwest of La Spezia. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 945, the municipality of Bonassola contains the frazioni Montaretto, Costella, Serra, Scernio, and San Giorgio. Bonassola borders the municipalities, Framura, Levanto. During World War Two, two American fifteen men missions tried to land and blow up a tunnel between Framura and Bonassola. Both missions failed but the missions soldiers were executed and buried in a mass grave by the German Army. Media related to Bonassola at Wikimedia Commons www. comune. bonassola. sp. it/ Bonassola
Bonassola
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Bonassola, the beach, town and a railway tunnel
Bonassola
20.
Milan
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Milan is a city in Italy, capital of the Lombardy region, and the most populous metropolitan area and the second most populous comune in Italy. The population of the city proper is 1,351,000, Milan has a population of about 8,500,000 people. It is the industrial and financial centre of Italy and one of global significance. In terms of GDP, it has the largest economy among European non-capital cities, Milan is considered part of the Blue Banana and lies at the heart of one of the Four Motors for Europe. Milan is an Alpha leading global city, with strengths in the arts, commerce, design, education, entertainment, fashion, finance, healthcare, media, services, research, and tourism. Its business district hosts Italys Stock Exchange and the headquarters of the largest national and international banks, the city is a major world fashion and design capital, well known for several international events and fairs, including Milan Fashion Week and the Milan Furniture Fair. The city hosts numerous cultural institutions, academies and universities, with 11% of the national total enrolled students, Milans museums, theatres and landmarks attract over 9 million visitors annually. Milan – after Naples – is the second Italian city with the highest number of accredited stars from the Michelin Guide, the city hosted the Universal Exposition in 1906 and 2015. Milan is home to two of Europes major football teams, A. C. Milan and F. C. Internazionale, the etymology of Milan is uncertain. One theory holds that the Latin name Mediolanum comes from the Latin words medio, however, some scholars believe lanum comes from the Celtic root lan, meaning an enclosure or demarcated territory in which Celtic communities used to build shrines. Hence, Mediolanum could signify the central town or sanctuary of a Celtic tribe, indeed, the name Mediolanum is borne by about sixty Gallo-Roman sites in France, e. g. Saintes and Évreux. Alciato credits Ambrose for his account, around 400 BC, the Celtic Insubres settled Milan and the surrounding region. In 222 BC, the Romans conquered the settlement, renaming it Mediolanum, Milan was eventually declared the capital of the Western Roman Empire by Emperor Diocletian in 286 AD. Diocletian chose to stay in the Eastern Roman Empire and his colleague Maximianus ruled the Western one, immediately Maximian built several monuments, such as a large circus 470 m ×85 m, the Thermae Herculeae, a large complex of imperial palaces and several other buildings. With the Edict of Milan of 313, Emperor Constantine I guaranteed freedom of religion for Christians, after the city was besieged by the Visigoths in 402, the imperial residence was moved to Ravenna. In 452, the Huns overran the city, in 539, the Ostrogoths conquered and destroyed Milan during the Gothic War against Byzantine Emperor Justinian I. In the summer of 569, a Teutonic tribe, the Lombards, conquered Milan, some Roman structures remained in use in Milan under Lombard rule. Milan surrendered to the Franks in 774 when Charlemagne took the title of King of the Lombards, the Iron Crown of Lombardy dates from this period
Milan
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Milan Cathedral,
La Scala opera house and
Porta Nuova business district
Milan
Milan
Milan
21.
Rome
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Rome is a special comune and the capital of Italy. Rome also serves as the capital of the Lazio region, with 2,873,598 residents in 1,285 km2, it is also the countrys largest and most populated comune and fourth-most populous city in the European Union by population within city limits. It is the center of the Metropolitan City of Rome, which has a population of 4.3 million residents, the city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, within Lazio, along the shores of the Tiber. Romes history spans more than 2,500 years, while Roman mythology dates the founding of Rome at only around 753 BC, the site has been inhabited for much longer, making it one of the oldest continuously occupied sites in Europe. The citys early population originated from a mix of Latins, Etruscans and it was first called The Eternal City by the Roman poet Tibullus in the 1st century BC, and the expression was also taken up by Ovid, Virgil, and Livy. Rome is also called the Caput Mundi, due to that, Rome became first one of the major centres of the Italian Renaissance, and then the birthplace of both the Baroque style and Neoclassicism. Famous artists, painters, sculptors and architects made Rome the centre of their activity, in 1871 Rome became the capital of the Kingdom of Italy, and in 1946 that of the Italian Republic. Rome has the status of a global city, Rome ranked in 2014 as the 14th-most-visited city in the world, 3rd most visited in the European Union, and the most popular tourist attraction in Italy. Its historic centre is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, monuments and museums such as the Vatican Museums and the Colosseum are among the worlds most visited tourist destinations with both locations receiving millions of tourists a year. Rome hosted the 1960 Summer Olympics and is the seat of United Nations Food, however, it is a possibility that the name Romulus was actually derived from Rome itself. As early as the 4th century, there have been alternate theories proposed on the origin of the name Roma. There is archaeological evidence of occupation of the Rome area from approximately 14,000 years ago. Evidence of stone tools, pottery and stone weapons attest to about 10,000 years of human presence, several excavations support the view that Rome grew from pastoral settlements on the Palatine Hill built above the area of the future Roman Forum. Between the end of the age and the beginning of the Iron age. However, none of them had yet an urban quality, nowadays, there is a wide consensus that the city was gradually born through the aggregation of several villages around the largest one, placed above the Palatine. All these happenings, which according to the excavations took place more or less around the mid of the 8th century BC. Despite recent excavations at the Palatine hill, the view that Rome has been indeed founded with an act of will as the legend suggests in the middle of the 8th century BC remains a fringe hypothesis. Traditional stories handed down by the ancient Romans themselves explain the earliest history of their city in terms of legend and myth
Rome
Rome
Rome
Rome
22.
Turin
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Turin is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region and was the first capital city of Italy. The city is located mainly on the bank of the Po River, in front of Susa Valley and surrounded by the western Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 892,649 while the population of the area is estimated by Eurostat to be 1.7 million inhabitants. The Turin metropolitan area is estimated by the OECD to have a population of 2.2 million, in 1997 a part of the historical center of Torino was inscribed in the World Heritage List under the name Residences of the Royal House of Savoy. Turin is well known for its Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo, Neo-classical, many of Turins public squares, castles, gardens and elegant palazzi such as Palazzo Madama, were built between the 16th and 18th centuries. This was after the capital of the Duchy of Savoy was moved to Turin from Chambery as part of the urban expansion, the city used to be a major European political center. Turin was Italys first capital city in 1861 and home to the House of Savoy, from 1563, it was the capital of the Duchy of Savoy, then of the Kingdom of Sardinia ruled by the Royal House of Savoy and finally the first capital of the unified Italy. Turin is sometimes called the cradle of Italian liberty for having been the birthplace and home of notable politicians and people who contributed to the Risorgimento, such as Cavour. The city currently hosts some of Italys best universities, colleges, academies, lycea and gymnasia, such as the University of Turin, founded in the 15th century, in addition, the city is home to museums such as the Museo Egizio and the Mole Antonelliana. Turins attractions make it one of the worlds top 250 tourist destinations, Turin is ranked third in Italy, after Milan and Rome, for economic strength. With a GDP of $58 billion, Turin is the worlds 78th richest city by purchasing power, as of 2010, the city has been ranked by GaWC as a Gamma World city. Turin is also home to much of the Italian automotive industry, the Taurini were an ancient Celto-Ligurian Alpine people, who occupied the upper valley of the Po River, in the center of modern Piedmont. In 218 BC, they were attacked by Hannibal as he was allied with their long-standing enemies, the Taurini chief town was captured by Hannibals forces after a three-day siege. As a people they are mentioned in history. It is believed that a Roman colony was established in 27 BC under the name of Castra Taurinorum, both Livy and Strabo mention the Taurinis country as including one of the passes of the Alps, which points to a wider use of the name in earlier times. In the 1st century BC, the Romans created a military camp, the typical Roman street grid can still be seen in the modern city, especially in the neighborhood known as the Quadrilatero Romano. Via Garibaldi traces the path of the Roman citys decumanus which began at the Porta Decumani. The Porta Palatina, on the side of the current city centre, is still preserved in a park near the Cathedral
Turin
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From top to bottom, left to right: panorama of the
Mole Antonelliana,
Valentino Park with the medieval village, Piazza Castello with Palazzo Reale and Palazzo Madama, San Carlo Plaza with the Caval ëd Bronz, the Arco Olimpico and the Lingotto, the sarcophagus of Oki at the
Egyptian Museum, a view of the hills, the
Po, the Gran Madre, the Monte of Cappuccini and
Palatine Towers.
Turin
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The Roman
Palatine Towers.
Turin
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Siege of Turin
Turin
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Turin in the 17th century.
23.
Tuscany
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Tuscany is a region in central Italy with an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, traditions, history, artistic legacy, Tuscany produces wines, including Chianti, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, Morellino di Scansano and Brunello di Montalcino. Having a strong linguistic and cultural identity, it is considered a nation within a nation. Tuscany is traditionally a popular destination in Italy, and the main tourist destinations by number of tourist arrivals are Florence, Pisa, Montecatini Terme, Castiglione della Pescaia and Grosseto. The village of Castiglione della Pescaia is also the most visited destination in the region. Additionally, Siena, Lucca, the Chianti region, Versilia and Val dOrcia are also internationally renowned, Tuscany has over 120 protected nature reserves, making Tuscany and its capital Florence popular tourist destinations that attract millions of tourists every year. In 2012, the city of Florence was the worlds 89th most visited city, roughly triangular in shape, Tuscany borders the regions of Liguria to the northwest, Emilia-Romagna to the north and east, Umbria to the east and Lazio to the southeast. The comune of Badia Tedalda, in the Tuscan Province of Arezzo, has an exclave named Ca Raffaello within Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany has a western coastline on the Tyrrhenian Sea, containing the Tuscan Archipelago, of which the largest island is Elba. Tuscany has an area of approximately 22,993 square kilometres, surrounded and crossed by major mountain chains, and with few plains, the region has a relief that is dominated by hilly country used for agriculture. Hills make up nearly two-thirds of the total area, covering 15,292 square kilometres, and mountains. Plains occupy 8. 4% of the total area—1,930 square kilometres —mostly around the valley of the River Arno, many of Tuscanys largest cities lie on the banks of the Arno, including the capital Florence, Empoli and Pisa. The pre-Etruscan history of the area in the late Bronze and Iron Ages parallels that of the early Greeks, following this, the Villanovan culture saw Tuscany, and the rest of Etruria, taken over by chiefdoms. City-states developed in the late Villanovan before Orientalization occurred and the Etruscan civilization rose, the Etruscans created the first major civilization in this region, large enough to establish a transport infrastructure, to implement agriculture and mining and to produce vibrant art. The Etruscans lived in Etruria well into prehistory, throughout their existence, they lost territory to Magna Graecia, Carthage and Celts. Despite being seen as distinct in its manners and customs by contemporary Greeks, the cultures of Greece, one reason for its eventual demise was this increasing absorption by surrounding cultures, including the adoption of the Etruscan upper class by the Romans. Soon after absorbing Etruria, Rome established the cities of Lucca, Pisa, Siena, and Florence, endowed the area with new technologies and development, and ensured peace. These developments included extensions of existing roads, introduction of aqueducts and sewers, however, many of these structures have been destroyed by erosion due to weather. The Roman civilization in the West collapsed in the 5th century AD, in the years following 572, the Longobards arrived and designated Lucca the capital of their Duchy of Tuscia
Tuscany
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Hilly landscape in
Val d'Orcia
Tuscany
–
Tuscany Toscana
Tuscany
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Tuscan landscape near
Siena
Tuscany
–
Cinerary urns of the
Villanovan culture
24.
Lerici
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For the district of Milan, see Muggiano. Lerici is a town and comune in the province of La Spezia in Liguria and it is situated on the coast of the Gulf of La Spezia,8 kilometres southeast of La Spezia. It is known as the place where the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley drowned, the town is connected by ferry to the Cinque Terre and Portovenere. One of the sights of Lerici is its castle which since its first founding in 1152 was used to help control the entrance of the Gulf of La Spezia. Today the castle contains a museum of palaeontology, the origins of the town date back to the Etruscan period. In the Middle Ages the town came under Genovese control, after it had been sold to Lucca, it became involved in a series of conflicts between Genoa and Pisa, as it was on their common border. In 1479, the town came under Genovese sway for good, Italian author Mario Soldati had a residence in the frazione of Tellaro. Italian painter Oreste Carpi spent many years in San Terenzo making hundreds of paintings and drawings reproducing town landscapes, english writers Mary Shelley and Percy Bysshe Shelley lived some three miles north in an isolated old boat house called Casa Magni, and anchored their sailing boat in Lerici. Their closest neighbours were the villagers of the hamlet of San Terenzo. Percy Bysshe Shelley drowned on 8 July 1822 in the Bay of Spezia, returning to Lerici from a journey to Leghorn and his corpse eventually washed up on the beach at Viareggio, located approximately halfway between Livorno and Lerici. The popularity of Lerici with the Shelleys and with Lord Byron earned the Golfo di Lerici its title of the Golfo dei Poeti, the Poets Bay. Hungarian author Baroness Emmuska Orczy, author of The Scarlet Pimpernel had a built in the hills above Lerici, near the locality of Bellavista. Orczy and her husband Montague Barstow spent several months there in the 1930s – alternating between La Padula, Villa Bijou in Monte Carlo, and trips to Britain, eventually they decided to abandon fascist Italy for Villa Bijou. Lerici is one of the communities which take part in the Palio del Golfo. Mougins, France, since 26 October 2008 Lerici is also twinned with Horsham, in Great Britain, Horsham is where Shelley was born, and Lerici where he died. Website of Pro Loco Lerici Learn about the events and tourist activities, Lerici Walks Castle to Castle Walk Description
Lerici
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Lerici
Lerici
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Oreste Carpi, View of Lerici, summertime
25.
Anchovy
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An anchovy is a small, common salt-water forage fish of the family Engraulidae. The 144 species are placed in 17 genera, they are found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans, and in the Black Sea, Anchovies are usually classified as oily fish. Anchovies are small, green fish with blue reflections due to a longitudinal stripe that runs from the base of the caudal fin. They range from 2 to 40 cm in length. The snout is blunt with tiny, sharp teeth in both jaws, the snout contains a unique rostral organ, believed to be sensory in nature, although its exact function is unknown. The mouth is larger than that of herrings and silversides, two fish which anchovies closely resemble in other respects, the anchovy eats plankton and recently hatched fish. Anchovies are found in scattered areas throughout the oceans, but are concentrated in temperate waters. They are generally accepting of a wide range of temperatures. Large schools can be found in shallow, brackish areas with muddy bottoms, as in estuaries and they are abundant in the Mediterranean, particularly in the Alboran Sea, Aegean Sea and the Black Sea. The species is caught along the coasts of Crete, Greece, Sicily, Italy, France, Turkey. They are also found on the coast of northern Africa, the range of the species also extends along the Atlantic coast of Europe to the south of Norway. Spawning occurs between October and March, but not in water colder than 12 °C, the anchovy appears to spawn at least 100 km from the shore, near the surface of the water. The anchovy is a significant food source for almost every predatory fish in its environment, including the California halibut, rock fish, yellowtail, shark, chinook, and coho salmon. It is also important to marine mammals and birds, for example, breeding success of California brown pelicans. Anchovies, like most clupeoids, are filter-feeders that open their mouths as they swim, as water passes through the mouth and out the gills, food particles are sieved by gill rakers and transferred into the esophagus. * Type species On average, the Turkish commercial fishing fleet catches around 300,000 tons per year, the largest catch is in November and December. The Peruvian anchovy fishery is one of the largest in the world, in 1973 it collapsed catastrophically due to the combined effects of overfishing and El Niño and did not recover fully for two decades. A traditional method of processing and preserving anchovies is to gut and salt them in brine, allow them to mature and this results in a characteristic strong flavor and the flesh turns deep grey
Anchovy
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Anchovies
Anchovy
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European anchovy, Engraulis encrasicolus
Anchovy
Anchovy
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Still Life with Anchovies, 1972,
Antonio Sicurezza
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Protected Designation of Origin
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This regulation ensures that only products genuinely originating in that region are allowed to be identified as such in commerce. The legislation first came into force in 1992 and these laws protect the names of wines, cheeses, hams, sausages, seafood, olives, olive oils, beers, Balsamic vinegar and even regional breads, fruits, raw meats and vegetables. In countries where Protected Geographical Status laws are enforced, only products which meet the various geographical, Protected indications are treated as intellectual property rights by the Customs Regulation 1383/2003, and infringing goods may be seized by customs on import. Within the European Union, enforcement measures vary, infringement may be treated as counterfeit, on 15 November 2011, the European Court of Auditors presented its report Do the design and management of the Geographical Indications Scheme allow it to be effective. The general regime governs the use of protected designations of origin and protected geographical indications for food, there are separate regimes for spirits and for aromatised drinks as well as for wines. The origin of the product is one of the criteria for use of the protected terms. The label Traditional Specialities Guaranteed is a protected term which does not impose any restrictions on the geographical origin of the product. The protection of geographical indications was extended to foodstuffs and other products in 1992. Given the widely different national provisions, this general regime gives much more power to the European Commission to ensure a harmonised protection across the European Union and it is currently governed by the Regulation on the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs. Otherwise the protection afforded by the two terms is equivalent, an application for a PDO or a PGI is first made to the authorities of the relevant Member State. It is judged by the Member State against the criteria in the Regulation and, if found to be acceptable, applications are published at both the national and Community stages of examination, and third parties can object to proposed PDOs or PGIs which they feel would harm their business. Hence Cheddar cheese was deemed to be a name. Feta was deemed not to have become generic, and was registered as a PDO to the disappointment of cheesemakers outside of Greece. In other words, to receive the PGI status, the product must be traditionally and at least partially manufactured within the specific region. The TSG quality scheme aims to provide a protection regime for food products of specific character. Differing from PDO and PGI, this quality scheme does not certify that the food product has a link to specific geographical area. To qualify for a TSG a food must be of “specific character” and either its raw materials,3 of Regulation 1151/12 “specific character” is defined as “the characteristic production attributes which distinguish a product clearly from other similar products of the same category”. 3 of Regulation 1151/12 “traditional” is defined as “proven usage on the market for a period that allows transmission between generations, this period is to be at least 30 years”
Protected Designation of Origin
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Vermouth
Protected Designation of Origin
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Protected designation of origin logo
Protected Designation of Origin
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Stilton – an example of an origin protected product.
Protected Designation of Origin
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A PDO apple.
