Mud, water and wood: The system that kept a 1604-year-old city afloat

The city is Venice! This is a remarkable BBC piece that I think is worth your time. Cheers.

Most modern structures are built to last 50 years or so, but ingenious ancient engineering has kept this watery city afloat for more than 1,600 years – using only wood.

As any local knows, Venice is an upside-down forest. The city, which turned 1604 years old on March 25, is built on the foundations of millions of short wooden piles, pounded in the ground with their tip facing downwards. These trees – larch, oak, alder, pine, spruce and elm of a length ranging between 3.5m (11.5ft) to less than 1m (3ft)  – have been holding up stone palazzos and tall belltowers for centuries, in a true marvel of engineering leveraging the forces of physics and nature.

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20250324-the-ancient-forest-that-supports-venice

Jaw -dropping reaction here as I gulped the Irish Breakfast tea this morning.  Was fortunate enough to spend 4 days in Venice in 2001, and the Basilica di San Marco left me in awe.  I am drawn to all ancient structures so spending hours there, looking at the ingenious architecture, was illuminating.....while not knowing how complex was the understory!
Thanks Douglas, this story saved me from the headlines today