10 KIẾN TRÚC ĐƯỢC XÂY
TRÊN CÁC ĐĨNH NÚI CHEO LEO!!
10 Amazing Structures
on Cliffs
Written by Stephanie
For those that are
afraid of heights, these amazing structures on cliffs might make you nauseous.
For the rest of us, however, this article might just give you a few more names
to add on to your bucket list. From art to settlements on cliffs and mountains,
you’ll find everything here.
1. Bandiagra Escarpment:
Home
to the Dogon people since the 15th century, the Bandiagra Escarpment settlement
in Mali, it served as protection from invaders and maintained their traditional
culture. Unfortunately, the culture that fostered the precarious stone
settlements is taking a battering from the tourist industry. A huge majority of
Mali’s visitors go to see the Dogon settlements, and many local artifacts are
stolen and sold for profit. Economic and environmental pressures are now
driving the native settlers away from the apparent comfort of their steep
dwellings to the nearby plains below.
2. Sky Caves of Nepal:
In
Nepal, close to the Himalayas, is a gorge that in certain parts makes the Grand
Canyon look like a ditch. The walls of the gorge have more than 10,000 caves,
many of them nearly 50 meters (over 150 ft) from the ground. Around 800 years
old, some are stacked eight or nine stories high, and they can only be reached
by scaling the fragile rock face with mountaineering equipment. The caves once
belonged to the Mustang civilization and were a thriving settlement on the
trade route between Tibet and India. The Mustang, were scholars, artists, and
very talented diggers, and they flourished for centuries. No one knows why the
caves were built or how they were accessed. Yet researchers and explorers have
found intricately painted Buddhist murals, ancient texts, and skeletons,
suggesting the caves were used for religious reasons. The caves also have
manuscripts from Bön, the Tibetan religion that dominated before Buddhism.
3. Madara
River:
On
a steep cliff in Bulgaria, 23 meters (75 ft) above the ground, is a carving of
rider and dog spearing a lion. UNESCO describes it as the only one of its kind
and lists it as a world heritage site. It dates as far back as the start of the
8th Century, representing the recognition of Bulgaria by the Byzantine Empire.
The cliff is about 100 meters (330 ft) tall, leaving the rider visible across a
huge distance. It’s famous in Bulgaria and was voted as the symbol to represent
the nation on the Euro, should they opt to join the currency. Inscriptions on
each side of the rider also provide the earliest written information on
Bulgarian history, so it’s perhaps no surprise that it’s become the country’s
foremost national symbol. And yet despite how celebrated the carving is as a
symbol, no one knows for certain who the rider is supposed to be.
4. Predjama
Castle:
There
are many ways to make your castle impenetrable, and building it on the side of
a 123-meter (400 ft) cliff is one of the more effective ones. Predjama Castle
in Slovenia almost seems to be stuck on to the front of the limestone face that
bears it. A fair bit of it is housed in a large natural cave. The castle as
it’s seen today was largely constructed in the 15th century, when it housed the
infamous the robber baron Erazem Lueger. Lueger made the mistake of killing a
relative of Fredrick III, the Holy Roman Emperor. Frederick sent his forces to
besiege Predjama, and Luger was forced to hole up for a year and a day. The
troops outside the castle weren’t aware that a secret passage linked the castle
to a nearby cave, and Lueger used it to keep himself supplied. The forces
bribed a servant to signal them when the baron was going to be in the castle’s
weakest spot—the outhouse. When Lueger made a visit to relieve himself, he was
killed by a single cannon shot through the wall.
5. The Neptune Of Monterosso Al Mare:
The
village of Monterosso al Mare, in Italy, is home to Villa Pastine, whose stone
terrace juts over the edge of a large cliff. The terrace is held in place by a
massive 14-meter (45 ft) tall statue, Il Gigante, as locals call it, is a
statue of Neptune, the Sea God, created at the beginning of 20th century as a
lavish decoration of Villa Pastine.. Monterosso del Mare is probably the
largest of the Cinque Terre villages in Italy. Since its founding in early 13th
century, the village functioned as a cultural and political centre of the
region and its status required proper protection. Until today, the intricate
and very efficient system of fortifications prevails; these were originally
built to ward off pirates. Sadly, the statue took a battering during the World
Wars, losing both arms and the trident it held.
6. The Maijishan Grottoes:
On
the sheer cliff that marks the southwest side of Maiji Mountain, people have
labored for centuries carving niches and caves, giving rise to what is known
today as the Maiji Caves. Inside the caves are clay statues, whose heights vary
from 20 centimeters (about 8 inches) to 15 meters (over 49 feet). Besides 194
Buddhist caves and niches, containing more than 7, 200 clay statues, there are
also murals of over 1, 300 square meters (about 1, 555 square yards) in the
Maiji Caves as well. These statues are works of art that reflect ancient
craftsmanship and dedication to the Buddhist ideal. Rarely can one find caves
and statues carved over sheer cliffs in China, and this is one of the most
distinguishing features of Maiji Caves. Being carved on the cliff, these caves
are connected by plank roads that hang precariously along the face of the
cliff. Visitors can only reach each cave by using these plank roads, which
offers a breathtaking experience.
7. Saint
Michael Of The Needle:
The
Chapel of St Michael d'Aiguilhe is a fascinating little pilgrimage chapel
perched atop a needle (aiguilhe) of rock in Le Puy-en-Velay, Auvergne. Jutting
out dramatically towards heaven, the rock needle has been a sacred place for
thousands of years: a prehistoric dolmen was built there and the Romans
dedicated it to Mercury before the Christians built a chapel to St. Michael.
Near the base of the rock is the 12th-century Chapel of St. Clair, which has an
octagonal plan and exterior mosaic decoration. One of the two doorways has an
ancient carved lintel showing the phases of the moon.
8. Guoliang
Tunnel:
Before
the 1st of May 1977 the only hope of making it to the small village on the
other side of the Taihang Mountains was to follow along a rock footpath. In
1972 workers began a five-year process of creating this winding 1200-meter long
tunnel, spanning 4 meters wide and 5 meters high. Wear and tear over the years
has caused this tunnel to become uneven, and the view from the thirty plus
windows will make your journey on this road even scarier. The Guoliang tunnel
is another addition to most dangerous and complicated roads to travel. Dubbed
as “the road that does not tolerate any mistakes”, most accidents in the tunnel
are primarily caused by the neglect of the traveller. Nonetheless, it is an
extremely scenic route and is a key destination on the Chinese tourism map.
9. Al-Hajjarah:
Al
Hajjarah surrounds and crowns the top of a hill. Yemeni vernacular architecture
is a very prevalent part of the houses, buildings, and structures. This village
was started at around the 12th century. Huge blocks of pure stone were put
together to form an uninterrupted series. Granaries were commonplace, making
the ability to store large amounts of food for long periods an easy
possibility. There are also cisterns, which are large water reservoirs. This
made it possible for the village to survive sieges and the periods in between
when they had to stay within the village for long periods. The buildings are
colorful and decorated with loud colors. Many say this is to keep the flies
away, and it works well to do just that.
10. Sichuan
Coffins:
People
sometimes will go that extra mile to honor their dead, the Pyramids are one
example, and just like it are the Sichuan Hanging coffins. In China, there are
places where dozens of coffins line steep cliffs. Some of the coffins sit on
beams of wood that are hammered into the mountainside. Others have been placed
in specially dug caves. All are at least 10 meters (33 ft) above the ground,
with some as high as 130 meters (427 ft) up the cliff walls. The coffins were
resting places for the Bo, an ethnic group that dominated the area for
millennia, until they were massacred by the Imperial Army of the Ming Dynasty,
before the 17th century. The coffins weigh around 200 kilograms (440 lbs), and
no-one knows how they got there. Speculation is that the Bo lowered them using
ropes from above, or built mounds of earth to allow them to reach the necessary
heights.
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