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The Grado Lagoon is an Italian Lagoon located in the northern Adriatic sea, which extends from the Fossalon island (near Grado) to the island of Anfora, next to the mouth of the small river Aussa.[1]
Characteristics[edit]
The lagoon, which covers an area of about 90 square kilometers and has nearly 120 islands, is divided into an eastern sector (called in Italian "Palud de sopra") and a western sector ("Palud de soto").[2]
The origins of the lagoon are relatively recent. Until the fifth century the land covered all the area, as evidenced by several archaeological findings, including a Roman road, now entirely covered by water, which connected Aquileia to its port of Grado.
Characteristic of the lagoon is the presence of houses called casoni, simple homes with roof of straw used by the fishermen of Grado.
The typical boat of the inhabitants of the lagoon is the batèla, that has a flat bottom and is operated with rowing. The batèla is usually long 5 to 10 meters, and is guided by an oarsman standing in the stern (and may be equipped with a sail).
The lagoon, which is bordered to the west by the Marano Lagoon, is crossed longitudinally by the "Venetian coast waterway", a waterway that connects Venice with the mouth of the Isonzo river. Sometimes the Grado and the Marano lagoons are considered a single huge lagoon called in Italian "Grado-Marano Laguna" (or even only "Laguna di Grado"), stretching from Grado to Lignano Sabbiadoro and called "the twin sister of the Laguna di Venezia".
Laguna West (Palud de soto)[edit]
The Laguna West (Palud de soto) is the largest and is full of islands. There are nearly one hundred like the beautiful Martignano island.
It is crossed by numerous canals, which are arranged along the main islands. Among them there it is (close to Grado) the small San Pietro d'Orio island, which for centuries was the seat of a monastery, another island called Ravaiarina (which is now equipped with fishing ponds and facilities) and Gorgo island (formerly called "Saints Cosimo and Damiano"), which previously housed a church and, during World War II, an Italian military area.
Going further west from Grado and heading for the Marano Lagoon there are, among other small islands, the island of Morgo, with widespread vegetation and well known in the past for its agricultural production, and the island of Beli, which owes its name to the legendary witch Bela who confused sailors. The westernmost island is Anfora, which acquired strategic importance in 1866, when it marked the boundary between the Italy and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Today it houses the small island-town of Porto Buso.
Laguna East (Palud de sora)[edit]
The Laguna East (Palud de sora) is the most recent and less deep. After the land reclamation of the Fossalon island, realized in the first half of last century, its surface is substantially halved.
Compared to the western lagoon, it is less rich in islands, but they have a lot of huge trees (like the easternmost island called Panera). Anyway, between those islands stands out Barbana, which is home to the 1500 years old Sanctuary of "Mary, mother of Jesus" and is permanently inhabited by a community of Franciscan friars. The island is visited each year during the celebration of the "Perdòn di Barban," a pilgrimage, which runs the first Sunday in July and includes a procession of boats decorated with flags in the lagoon from Grado to Barbana.[3]
In the eastern lagoon there it is even the island called Schiusa, recently created with fill material, and now entirely urbanized and integrated with Grado.
Of course, the island-town of Grado (made historically of small little islands, like Venice) is the biggest of the Grado Lagoon and is located just 20 kms from the mouth of the Isonzo river.
Main islands in the Grado Lagoon[edit]
The most important of the nearly 120 islands in the Grado Lagoon are:
- Grado
- Barbana island
- Porto Buso
- San Pietro d'Orio
- Anfora
- Schiusa
- Panera
- Morgo
- Gorgo
- Ravaiarina
- Fossalon
- Beli
- Martignano