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Cotton Castles


Cotton Castles
Photo Information
Copyright: James Parker (Jamesp) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1369 W: 9 N: 6334] (18906)
Genre: Landscapes
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 1980-08
Categories: River
Photo Version: Original Version
Theme(s): Geological Wonders [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2007-05-31 2:44
Viewed: 4963
Points: 20
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
I took this picture in 1980 after driving from the UK to Turkey, which was then quite an ordeal. I used a Pentax camera and 50mm lense and 50asa Agfa slide film. It is a scanned slide.

Pamukkale, meaning "cotton castle" in Turkish, is a UNESCO World Heritage site and major attraction in south-western Turkey in the Denizli Province. The ancient city of Hierapolis was built on top of the white "castle" which is in total about 2700 meters long and 160m high. It can be seen from a great distance, eg. when driving down the hills on the opposite side of the valley to the town of Denizli, which is 20 km away. Pamukkale is located in Turkey's Inner Aegean region, in the River Menderes valley, which enjoys a temperate climate over the greater part of the year.

The tectonic movements that took place in the fault depression of the Menderes river basin did not only cause frequent earthquakes, but also gave rise to the emergence of a number of very hot springs, and it is the water from one of these springs, with its large mineral content — chalk in particular — that created Pamukkale. Apart from some radioactive material, the water contains large amounts of hydrogen carbonate and calcium, which leads to the precipitation of calcium bi-carbonate. The effect of this natural phenomenon leaves thick white layers of limestone and travertine cascading down the mountain slope, making the area look like a fortress of cotton or a frozen waterfall.

Only a few other places in the world are somewhat similar, such as the Mammoth Hot Springs in the USA, and HuangLong in SiChuan Province of China (another UNESCO World Heritage Site).

I had a great time in Syria, which was mainly a historical trip.
SelenE, delic, garyfudge, PaulH, blakitan, Alex99, lovenature, cicindela has marked this note useful
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Discussions
ThreadThread Starter Messages Updated
World's natural Heritagewinterpalace 1 11-25 07:19
To ozgurzeyhan: SyriaJamesp 1 04-27 14:12
To garyfudge: TimeJamesp 1 05-31 04:42
To delic: GutsJamesp 1 05-31 03:01
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Critiques [Translate]

  • Great 
  • delic Gold Star Critiquer [C: 440 W: 6 N: 310] (898)
  • [2007-05-31 2:53]
  • [+]

Hello James,
You had guts to drive through Turkey in 8-1980 considering the chaos at that particular month. Love the pink in this photo. Is that a herd of sheep in the back?
Best wishes,
Hakan

  • Great 
  • SelenE Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2249 W: 65 N: 4205] (13972)
  • [2007-05-31 3:40]

Good morning James,
And welcome back, glad you had a good time in your trip to Syria.
This place seems so familiar to me :o) This is your first photo from Turkey as far as I can remember, hope to see more... TFS .
Selen

Great shot James.

Lovely colours hue, I'm guessing it's early or late.
Very interesting as to the formation and apparent rarity.

Gary

  • Great 
  • PaulH Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1137 W: 26 N: 3879] (13882)
  • [2007-05-31 4:30]

Hi James,

wonderful subtle colours and tones, the different layers and levels of limestone add alot of depth. A great shot.

Paul

Hi James,
Very interesting landscape, nicely composed picture.
Aesthetic image.

BL

  • Great 
  • Alex99 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 4072 W: 133 N: 7096] (23735)
  • [2007-05-31 9:29]

Hi James.
Very nice shot despite of taking time and applied equipment. Amazing view, great sharpness and details of the image, nice and pleasant colour palette, full and interesting note. Well done and TFS.
Alexei.

  • Great 
  • clnaef Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 778 W: 67 N: 645] (6814)
  • [2007-05-31 12:28]

Bonjour,
Etonnante texture bien drapée.
Bonne soirée.
clnaef

  • Great 
  • arfer Gold Star Critiquer [C: 2731 W: 0 N: 0] (0)
  • [2007-05-31 23:35]

Hello James

Wow it looks like a frozen waterfall.It is a very beautiful sight.I like the hue of the sun as it reflects on the mineral.It has very nice natural lines .TFS

Rob

Dear James,
This time I decided to comment picture from country to which I will go in less than 1 week :)
I like a lot a climat of this pictures. You controlled in the right way the colours and light. And even if I would saturate a little more the photo, it is still very nice.
TFS and my best greetings from rather colder place ;)
Radomir

Hi. You said
"I had a great time in Syria, which was mainly a historical trip."
but
Pamukkale is in the Turkey as known...

Hi James

A good image of this famous site.

TFS

Verite

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