Rio
Marina
The Iron capital, her mines and port were
used in the excavation and transportation
of the mineral that still today, with her
sparkle and reddish color characterize this
small town, from the color of the houses to
the color of the sand, the color of the very
essence of her foundations.
Of particular historical interest, the hexagon
tower located at the towns port and the
oratory of San Rocco built in 1570. Also worthy
of a visit is the Mineral Museum which is
host to over 700 examples of beautiful and
rare minerals.
After the imminent closure of the mines,
development of the town evolved around tourism
and today, Rio Marina has become a popular
seaside resort.
Le vecchie miniere si trovano tutte nella
parte orientale dell'Elba, nei territori
dei comuni di Rio Marina e Capoliveri. Procedendo
da nord a sud si incontra la miniera di
Rioalbano che si estende dal tratto di costa
tra Cala del Telegrafo e Rialbano a tutto
il Monte Calendozio.
 up
Here, as early as Etruscan and Roman times,
minerals, mainly haematite and limonite,
were mined and processed locally. The Rio
Marina mine is close to the last houses
in the town, and extends as far as Monte
Giove; large quantities of haematite and
pyrite were mined here.
At the foot of Monte Fico,
to the north of Ortano beach, is the Ortano
mine. The pyrite extracted from the mine
was used to produce sulphuric acid. Some
hedembergite and ilvaite crystals of outstanding
size were found in this mine.
To the north-east of Porto Azzurro, just
over one kilometre from each other as the
crow flies, are the Terra Nera and Capo
Bianco mines. The Terra Nera mine from which
pyrite, haematite and magnetite were extracted,
has now become a little fresh water lake
close to the sea.
up
 Limonite
was extracted from the Capo Bianco mine,
so-called because of the colour of the rock.
At the southernmost tip of the Monte Calamita
promontory are the Punta Calamita and Punta
Bianca mines, both of which produced mainly
magnetite.
The main villages in the municipality of
Rio Marina are: Capo d’Arco, Ortano
and Cavo. The latter is situated at the
far north end of the island, at the foot
of Monte Grosso.
Cavo is a seaside resort, with good tourist
facilities, and a sandy beach that stretches
as far as Capo Castello, where there are
the remains of a I century AD Roman villa
and a splendid coastline with cliffs extending
from Capo Castello to Capo della Vita.
In addition to being the nearest landing
point for anyone arriving from the mainland,
the little harbour is equipped to supply
water and fuel to pleasure craft. Giuseppe
Garibaldi was an illustrious visitor to
the village in 1849, on his way to the Island
of Caprera.
up
In the village one can admire
the Tonietti Mausoleum, an unusual Liberty
style building that stands out against the
island’s wild vegetation, designed
by the architect Gino Coppedè (Florence
1866 – Rome 1927) commissioned by the
Tonietti family as a sepulchral chapel.
The Tonietti family were the first licensees
of Elba’s eastern coast iron mines,
after the Unification of Italy. Other works
by Coppedè include the Via Dora district
in Rome.
Main Beaches: La
caletta (sabbia e scoglio), I Topinetti
(ghiaia), Cala Seregola (ghiaia e scoglio),
Le Fornacelle (ghiaia), Il Porticciolo (sabbia),
Ortano (sabbia e ghiaia), Cavo (sabbia e
ghiaia), Frugoso (ghiaia).
Places of Historical Interest: Torre
Appianea (tower), Oratory of San Rocco,
Roman villa of Capocastello (Cavo), Archeological
excavations of San Bennato (Cavo), Castle
of Mount Giove.
Places of cultural interest: Mineral
Park of the island of Elba-Cantiere Bacino
(ship yard), The museum of Elban Minerals
(at the local council buildings), Murals
depicting the the evolution of Rio (Antique
workshop of San Jacobo),The emergence of
Ilvaite (King Fulvio 1-we recommend you
visit in the evenings).
|
jeudi 20 novembre 2008
les municipalités de l'île
