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Symphony of Stones - prismatic lavas at Garni, Armenia
Massive lava flows showing some of the most impressive columnar jointed prisms are exposed in the canyon of the Azat River, beneath the village of Garni, famous for its preserved Roman temple. The excursion from the temple down into the river valley should not be missed if you're interested in geology and visit the area.
Vertical prismatic lavas in canyon of the Azat River, Armenia (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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Slightly curved columns here (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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Natural steps formed by the tops of dozens of columns (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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Perfectly shaped parallel prismatic columns rising several tens of meters (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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The side of the canyon is made entirely of columnar lavas (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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River erosion has carved out an open cave, about 5 meters tall and 4 meters wide at the side of the ... [
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Some locals having lunch break in the shade of the columns (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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View towards the top of the cave, made of the bases of columns. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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The side of the canyon (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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View up along the cliff made of long regular lava columns (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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Organ-pipes made of stone (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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Part of the cliff made of lava columns; at the base of many columns are small birds'nests. (Photo: T... [
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Zoom onto the side of columns (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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Closer view to the bases of the columns (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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The regularity of the lava columns in this place is amazing. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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Most columns have 5 or 6 sides, but other numbers also occur infrequently. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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View up towards the lava columns (Garni gorge, Armenia) (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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The columns were formed as result of slow contraction of the lava flow during cooling with a very re... [
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Oblique columns (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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Eroded lava columns (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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Columns partially covered by vegetation (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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Irregular arrangement of lava columns (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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Walking along the "Symphony of Stones", the nickname of the site. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [
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