The Gavarnie Cirque : a celebrated “nature’s colossus

Monique Fort (1)

1 PRODIG - Pôle de recherche pour l'organisation et la diffusion de l'information géographique

Surrounded by peaks at height more than 3,000 m, the Gavarnie cirque forms, with two other cirques and the adjacent Spanish canyons, an exceptional landscape recognised in 1997 as a UNESCO World Heritage site for both its natural and cultural values. It is an outstanding geomorphosite straddling the Central Pyrenees, famous for its 1,500-m-high limestone amphitheatre, its waterfalls, and the Brèche de Roland. It results from a long evolution, including the formation of the Pyrenean range, the development of Quaternary glaciers, and a long history of human occupation and exchanges across the French/ Spanish border. It has always been an inspiring place for many artists and is much appreciated by tourists and climbers.

Mots clés: Calcareous cirque; Thrust nappes; Pyrenean glaciation; Waterfalls

Domaines: Géographie

Monique Fort. The Gavarnie Cirque : a celebrated “nature’s colossus. Landscapes and landforms of France, World geomorphological landscapes, Springer Science+Business Media, pp.115-126, 2013. ⟨hal-01266954⟩