The mysterious rock shapes
We are in Liguria on Alpe di Baudo mountain, above the ancient village of Carpasio.
Here, dozens of stone piles emerge from the earth, arranged with great care. There are several fascinating theories about their origin. However, digging into the memories of the inhabitants of the Carpasina Valley reveals the mystery.
At these altitudes, farmers of the valley primarily grew hay. The metal scythe used to harvest hay is no friend of the stone. For this reason, the rocky soil was cleared for easier harvesting by gathering the stones in piles.
These rock piles are quite common on the Western Liguria mountains, but none are shaped as perfectly as those of the Alpe di Baudo. Here, the builders took time to carefully arrange the stones because they were being paid by the day in a state run land reclamation operation during the fascist era.
Translation by Ian Baronofsky
Testo a cura di Nicola Ferrarese, immagini di Nicola Ferrarese e Claudio Cecchi