{"id":2112,"date":"2026-07-29T09:46:59","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T07:46:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/etnahiker.it\/acitrezza-and-the-columnar-basalts-where-etna-began\/"},"modified":"2026-07-29T15:52:15","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T13:52:15","slug":"acitrezza-and-the-columnar-basalts-where-etna-began","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/etnahiker.it\/en\/acitrezza-and-the-columnar-basalts-where-etna-began\/","title":{"rendered":"Acitrezza and the columnar basalts: where Etna began"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>There are places where the history of Etna can be read without climbing to altitude. One of these is <strong>Acitrezza<\/strong>, a fishing village facing the Ionian coast a few kilometers from Catania, where the sea has laid bare the volcano&#8217;s oldest rocks. Here the <strong>columnar basalts<\/strong> emerge from the water like dark stone organ pipes, and the famous <strong>Faraglioni dei Ciclopi <\/strong>complete a scene where geology and mythology overlap.  <\/p>\n\n<p>In this article we look at how <strong>the columnar basalts of Acitrezza formed, where to observe them, and what pillow lavas are,<\/strong> and why exactly this stretch of coast marks the beginning of Etna&#8217;s long eruptive history.<\/p>\n\n<h2>Acitrezza: where it all began<\/h2>\n\n<p>Acitrezza sits at the foot of Etna, the highest active volcano in Europe, and its geology is inseparably linked to that of the volcano. About <strong>500,000 years ago,<\/strong> however, Etna as we know it did not yet exist: the sea stood in its place. The first eruptive activity consisted of <strong>submarine eruptions<\/strong>, which occurred along fractures opening on the seafloor, and it is precisely those rocks \u2014 later uplifted and brought to light \u2014 that today emerge along the coast of Acitrezza and Acicastello.  <\/p>\n\n<p>This is why this stretch of coastline is often called &#8220;the place where it all began&#8221;: not simply a scenic viewpoint over the sea, but the opening chapter of Etna&#8217;s biography, written in stone.<\/p>\n\n<figure style=\"margin: 2em auto; text-align: center;\">\n  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/etnahiker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/acitrezza-faraglione-grande-basalti-colonnari.webp\" alt=\"The Faraglione Grande of Acitrezza seen from above, with the basalt columns and the coast in the background\" style=\"display: block; margin: 0 auto; max-width: 70%; height: auto;\" loading=\"lazy\"\/>\n  <figcaption style=\"margin-top: 0.6em; font-size: 0.9em; color: #666; text-align: center;\">The Faraglione Grande of Acitrezza: the basalt columns are visible along the entire flank of the rock, above the submerged shoal.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n<h2>Columnar basalts: how the stone &#8220;organ pipes&#8221; are formed<\/h2>\n\n<p>Columnar basalts are one of the most fascinating natural wonders of eastern Sicily. They form when a mass of lava cools slowly and, as it contracts, cracks according to <strong>regular geometric patterns<\/strong>: the result is columns with a polygonal, often hexagonal, cross-section, standing side by side like bundles of organ pipes. <\/p>\n\n<p>At Acitrezza, these columns are not merely a decorative feature of the landscape: they represent the <strong>feeder conduit <\/strong>of the submarine eruption, that is, the pathway along which magma from the mantle rose through the fracture that opened on the seafloor. Observing them means looking inside the volcano&#8217;s &#8220;plumbing system,&#8221; normally invisible because it lies buried under hundreds of meters of rock. <\/p>\n\n<figure style=\"margin: 2em auto; text-align: center; max-width: 360px;\">\n  <div style=\"position: relative; width: 100%; padding-bottom: 177.78%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 12px;\">\n    <iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/durvxWrT4_w\" title=\"The columnar basalts of Acitrezza\" style=\"position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; border: 0;\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/iframe>\n  <\/div>\n  <figcaption style=\"margin-top: 0.6em; font-size: 0.9em; color: #666; text-align: center;\">The columnar basalts of Acitrezza seen up close: the regular fracturing produced by the cooling of the lava.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n<h3>The vertical basalts<\/h3>\n\n<p><strong>The <strong>vertical<\/strong> columns can be observed at three main points: to the Northeast of the Faraglione Grande, <\/strong>where they reach a considerable height; in the <strong>old harbor of Acitrezza<\/strong>; and in the area to the <strong>South of Isola Lachea.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p>In the old harbor, in particular, something unusual can be seen: from the seafront promenade only the <strong>tops<\/strong> of the columns are visible, because the basalts have not yet fully emerged. That area is a feeder conduit that <strong>bradyseism<\/strong> \u2014 the slow rising and sinking of the ground \u2014 and marine erosion have gradually brought back to light, cutting through it from above. <\/p>\n\n<figure style=\"margin: 2em auto; text-align: center;\">\n  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/etnahiker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/acitrezza-porto-vecchio-testate-basalti-colonnari.webp\" alt=\"The tops of the columnar basalts emerging in the old harbor of Acitrezza, with the village in the background\" style=\"display: block; margin: 0 auto; max-width: 70%; height: auto;\" loading=\"lazy\"\/>\n  <figcaption style=\"margin-top: 0.6em; font-size: 0.9em; color: #666; text-align: center;\">The tops of the columnar basalts in the old harbor of Acitrezza: the columns are cut from above and barely emerge, like a pavement of volcanic stone.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n<h3>The horizontal basalts<\/h3>\n\n<p>The columns can also arrange themselves horizontally, when the direction of cooling changes. Formations of this type are found a little further south, along the <strong>seafront of Acicastello <\/strong>and in the area near the <strong>Norman castle,<\/strong> built right on a cliff of submarine volcanic rock. <\/p>\n\n<p>This is not the only case in Sicily: another famous formation of horizontal columnar basalts is found at the <strong>Alcantara Gorges<\/strong>, a site of great geological interest that we will discuss in a future article.<\/p>\n\n<h2>Columnar basalts and pillow lava: two faces of the same eruption<\/h2>\n\n<p>Columnar basalts and<strong> pillow lava <\/strong>(cushion lava) tell of two moments of the same submarine eruption. The former form the feeder conduit; the latter form on top of it, when<strong> <\/strong>the lava comes into contact with water and cools suddenly, solidifying into rounded masses like stacked cushions. <\/p>\n\n<p>In the Acitrezza area, however, pillows are <strong>missing<\/strong> from the tops of the columnar basalts: the sea&#8217;s demolishing force has removed them over time. They are preserved instead in areas that have better withstood marine abrasion, where it is still possible to read the complete sequence \u2014 conduit below, cushions above. <\/p>\n\n<h2>Acitrezza between Verga and the Odyssey<\/h2>\n\n<p>Acitrezza is not just a geological site, however. It is also one of the places most steeped in literary memory in Sicily: here <strong>Giovanni Verga<\/strong> set I <em>Malavoglia,<\/em> and the village has preserved the authentic atmosphere of the fishing village the novel describes, with boats pulled up on shore, nets spread out in the sun, and a life governed by the rhythm of the sea. <\/p>\n\n<p>The connection with the <strong>Odyssey<\/strong> is even older. The islands and rocks off the <strong>coast \u2014 the Cyclops Islands<\/strong> \u2014 are traditionally identified with the boulders that <strong>Polyphemus<\/strong>, blinded, hurled at Ulysses&#8217; fleeing ship. It is one of the most famous episodes of the Homeric poem, and it has given Acitrezza a lasting place in the mythological geography of the Mediterranean.  <\/p>\n\n<p>Here, geology and myth say the same thing in different words: these rocks have not always been here, they came from the depths. Science calls them submarine basalts; legend calls them a giant&#8217;s boulders. <\/p>\n\n<figure style=\"margin: 2em auto; text-align: center;\">\n  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/etnahiker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/acitrezza-faraglione-grande-controluce.webp\" alt=\"The Faraglione Grande of Acitrezza backlit, seen from the cliff\" style=\"display: block; margin: 0 auto; max-width: 70%; height: auto;\" loading=\"lazy\"\/>\n  <figcaption style=\"margin-top: 0.6em; font-size: 0.9em; color: #666; text-align: center;\">The profile of the Faraglione Grande in backlight: the silhouette that tradition identifies with the boulders hurled by Polyphemus.<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n<h2>What to see in Acitrezza in half a day<\/h2>\n\n<ul>\n  <li><strong>The seafront promenade and the old port.<\/strong> The best spot to observe the tops of the columnar basalts, still partially submerged.<\/li>\n  <li><strong>The Faraglioni sea stacks and Lachea Island.<\/strong> The rocky face to the north-east of the Faraglione Grande shows the vertical columns at their maximum height.<\/li>\n  <li><strong>Acicastello.<\/strong> A few minutes further south, the Norman castle on its lava rock and the horizontal basalts of the seafront complete the picture.<\/li>\n  <li><strong>The right light.<\/strong> Early morning or late afternoon: the raking light brings out the geometry of the columns and makes the fracturing far more legible.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<h2>Discover Etna with EtnaHiker<\/h2>\n\n<p>Acitrezza is the ideal starting point for understanding Etna: from its underwater rocks to the summit craters at over 3,300 metres, the volcano tells half a million years of history<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/etnahiker.it\/en\/\">. Discover EtnaHiker&#8217;s excursions<\/a><\/strong> and experience the volcano with authorised volcanological guides, who turn every stop into a story of the ground beneath your feet.<\/p>\n\n<p>If you&#8217;d like to continue the journey upwards, read our in-depth feature on <a href=\"https:\/\/etnahiker.it\/en\/etna-summit-craters\/\">Etna&#8217;s summit craters as well.<\/a><\/p>\n\n<h2>Frequently Asked Questions about Acitrezza and the Columnar Basalts<\/h2>\n\n<h3>What are the columnar basalts of Acitrezza?<\/h3>\n<p>They are columns of lava rock with a polygonal cross-section, formed by the cooling and contraction of lava during an ancient submarine eruption. They make up the feeder conduit along which the magma rose from the seabed. <\/p>\n\n<h3>How old are the rocks of Acitrezza?<\/h3>\n<p>They date back to around 500,000 years ago, to the initial submarine phase of the volcanic activity from which Etna subsequently developed.<\/p>\n\n<h3>Where can you see the columnar basalts in Acitrezza?<\/h3>\n<p>The vertical columns can be seen to the north-east of the Faraglione Grande, in the old port of Acitrezza and to the south of Lachea Island. The horizontal formations are found along the Acicastello seafront, near the castle. <\/p>\n\n<h3>What is the difference between columnar basalts and pillow lava?<\/h3>\n<p>Columnar basalts represent the conduit through which the magma rose, whereas pillow lavas form at the top of it, when the lava emerges into contact with the water and cools rapidly, taking on rounded shapes. In Acitrezza, the pillows on the column tops have been removed by marine erosion. <\/p>\n\n<h3>Why is Acitrezza linked to the Odyssey?<\/h3>\n<p>Because the Isole dei Ciclopi, off the coast, are traditionally identified with the boulders that Polyphemus hurled at Odysseus&#8217; ship after being blinded, according to the episode recounted in the Odyssey.<\/p>\n\n<h3>Are there other columnar basalts in Sicily?<\/h3>\n<p>Yes. The best-known formation, besides those of Acitrezza and Acicastello, is that of the Alcantara Gorges, where the columns are largely arranged horizontally. <\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There are places where the history of Etna can be read without climbing to altitude. One of these is Acitrezza, a fishing village facing the Ionian coast a few kilometers from Catania, where the sea has laid bare the volcano&#8217;s oldest rocks. Here the columnar basalts emerge from the water like dark stone organ pipes, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2106,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2112","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-etna-and-surroundings"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Acitrezza and the columnar basalts: where Etna began - Etna Hiker<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/etnahiker.it\/en\/acitrezza-and-the-columnar-basalts-where-etna-began\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Acitrezza and the columnar basalts: where Etna began - Etna Hiker\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"There are places where the history of Etna can be read without climbing to altitude. One of these is Acitrezza, a fishing village facing the Ionian coast a few kilometers from Catania, where the sea has laid bare the volcano&#8217;s oldest rocks. Here the columnar basalts emerge from the water like dark stone organ pipes, [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/etnahiker.it\/en\/acitrezza-and-the-columnar-basalts-where-etna-began\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Etna Hiker\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/etnahiker\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-29T07:46:59+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-07-29T13:52:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/etnahiker.it\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/acitrezza-basalti-blog.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"469\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"adminHiker\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"adminHiker\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/etnahiker.it\\\/en\\\/acitrezza-and-the-columnar-basalts-where-etna-began\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/etnahiker.it\\\/en\\\/acitrezza-and-the-columnar-basalts-where-etna-began\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"adminHiker\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/etnahiker.it\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/de3fef5209c8c41d4392707f9a56c5e7\"},\"headline\":\"Acitrezza and the columnar basalts: where Etna began\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-29T07:46:59+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-07-29T13:52:15+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/etnahiker.it\\\/en\\\/acitrezza-and-the-columnar-basalts-where-etna-began\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1341,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/etnahiker.it\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/etnahiker.it\\\/en\\\/acitrezza-and-the-columnar-basalts-where-etna-began\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/etnahiker.it\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/acitrezza-basalti-blog.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Etna and Surroundings\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/etnahiker.it\\\/en\\\/acitrezza-and-the-columnar-basalts-where-etna-began\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/etnahiker.it\\\/en\\\/acitrezza-and-the-columnar-basalts-where-etna-began\\\/\",\"name\":\"Acitrezza and the columnar basalts: where Etna began - 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One of these is Acitrezza, a fishing village facing the Ionian coast a few kilometers from Catania, where the sea has laid bare the volcano&#8217;s oldest rocks. 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