The Scala dei Turchi earns a place among the 100 most important geosites in the world

The Scala dei Turchi, located in Realmonte in the province of Agrigentogained international prestige recognition by joining the list of 100 Most Important Geosites in the World. This extraordinary site, known for its spectacular beauty and special geological features, was ranked fifth in the Stratigraphy and Sedimentology.

The recognition was welcomed with great enthusiasm by the local community and authorities, in particular by the mayor Sabrina Lattuca, who personally followed the outcome of the candidature. The inclusion of the Scala dei Turchi in this prestigious list not only confirms the uniqueness and importance of the site, but also paves the way for future recognition, including possible designation as a World Heritage Site UNESCO.

To celebrate this recognition and raise awareness of its geological importance, the mayor unveiled two illustrated panels in the Belvederi area explaining the geological processes responsible for the formation of the cliff.

Insight into the Geological Features of the Scala dei Turchi

The Scala dei Turchi looks like a white, stepped cliff overlooking the sea. The crag is composed of a white marl to Globigerine, a type of planktonic foraminifer belonging to the Lower Pliocene Trubi Formation. These rocks testify to the return of the Mediterranean Sea to normal marine conditions after the Messinian Salinity Crisis, which occurred about six million years ago. During that crisis, the Mediterranean basin had almost dried up due to the closure of the connection with the Atlantic. The subsequent influx of oceanic water restored a normal marine sedimentation environment, allowing the formation of trubs.

The trubs, so called in official geological mapping, are rocks varying from white to yellowish and brown, deposited in deep sea conditions. These rocks, rich in planktonic foraminifera, show a rhythmic alternation of marls and limestones, reflecting cycles linked to periodic variations in orbital parameters, such as the precession of the equinoxes.

The characteristic stepped shape of the cliff is due to the differentiated erosion caused by weathering, which acts more easily on the softer layers of marl, leaving the more resistant limestone layers more prominent.