Arena tettonica di Sardona (sito naturale): il libro aperto della formazione delle montagne
Sulle montagne della Svizzera orientale corre una linea netta, visibile a occhio nudo, dove rocce antiche di milioni di anni si sono accavallate su rocce molto più giovani. È il sovrascorrimento di Glarona: uno dei luoghi al mondo dove meglio si capisce come la collisione dei continenti solleva le montagne.
At a glance
The Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona, in the mountains of north-eastern Switzerland around the Glarus region, is one of the clearest places on Earth to see how mountains are built. Across its peaks runs the Glarus Thrust, a sharp line, visible from far off, where a sheet of ancient rock has been pushed up and over much younger rock by the colliding of continents that raised the Alps. Long studied by geologists, this textbook exposure of mountain-building was inscribed by UNESCO in 2008.
Key facts
- UNESCO: World Heritage since 2008 (Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona)
- Glarus Thrust: a clear line where old rock overlies young rock
- Mountain-building: shows how continental collision raises mountains
- Visible from afar: the thrust line crosses whole mountainsides
- A geological classic: studied since the 19th century
- Alpine setting: high peaks, valleys and the Martinsloch window
History
In the 19th century the rocks of the Glarus Alps puzzled geologists: older rock lay on top of younger, the reverse of the normal order. The explanation — that a vast slab of ancient rock had been thrust horizontally for tens of kilometres over younger rock as the Alps formed — was at first hard to accept, but study of the Glarus Thrust helped establish the science of how mountains are built by the collision of the Earth’s plates.
The clarity and accessibility of the thrust, traceable as a sharp line across the mountains, makes the area a place of pilgrimage for geologists and students. Recognised as an outstanding example of mountain-building displayed in the landscape, the Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona was inscribed by UNESCO in 2008.
What you see
Across the peaks of the area — around the Tschingelhörner, Piz Sardona and the famous Martinsloch “window” in the rock — the Glarus Thrust appears as a clean, near-horizontal line dividing the grey older rock above from the darker younger rock below. Hiking trails and viewpoints reveal it in the high alpine scenery of cliffs, scree and meadows.
The sight of the thrust line running across whole mountainsides, telling the story of the Alps, is the wonder of Sardona.
Practical information
- Area: mountain trails and viewpoints around Glarus, Flims and Elm
- Best time: summer for hiking
- Time needed: a day or more
- Setting: in the Glarus Alps of north-eastern Switzerland
Getting there
The Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona is in the mountains of north-eastern Switzerland, between the cantons of Glarus, St Gallen and Graubünden, reached from towns such as Elm, Flims and Vättis. GPS: 46.92° N, 9.27° E.
Nearby
- Elm — the village famed for the Martinsloch sun phenomenon
- Flims — a resort with views of the thrust
- Glarus — the cantonal town to the north
Sources
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre — “Swiss Tectonic Arena Sardona” (ref. 1179)
- UNESCO-Welterbe Tektonikarena Sardona — official body
- Encyclopaedia Britannica — thrust fault; Alps
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