(5 years and 3060 days ago)
karaflazz says:
The Corinth Canal (Greek: ΔιώÏυγα της ΚοÏίνθου) is a canal that connects the Gulf of Corinth with the Saronic Gulf in the Aegean Sea. It cuts through the narrow Isthmus of Corinth and separates the Peloponnesian peninsula from the Greek mainland, thus effectively making the former an island. The canal is 6.3 kilometres (3.9 mi) in length and was built between 1881 and 1893.
Several rulers in antiquity dreamed of cutting a canal through the Isthmus.[citation needed] The first to propose such an undertaking was the tyrant Periander in the 7th century BC.He abandoned the project due to technical difficulties, and instead constructed a simpler and less costly overland portage road, named Diolkos.According to another theory, Periander feared that a canal would have robbed Corinth of its dominating role as entrepôt for goods. Remnants of the Diolkos still exist next to the modern canal.
The modern attempt at construction began in the 1870s following the successful opening of the Suez Canal. A French company was hired to build it, but due to financial difficulties, the company ceased work after only the two ends had been dug. Finally, in 1881 the Hungarian architects István Türr and Béla Gerster, who had also been involved with early surveys for the Panama Canal, were hired to plan a new canal. A Greek company led by Andreas Syngros (the main contractor being Antonis Matsas) ultimately took over the project and completed it in 1893.
On April 7, 2010, Australian daredevil Robbie Maddison performed a motocross jump over the canal.
The Corinth Canal is considered a great technical achievement for its time. It saves the 700-kilometre (430 mi) journey around the Peloponnesus for smaller ships, but since it is only 24 metres (79 ft) wide it is too narrow for modern ocean freighters. The canal is nowadays mostly used by tourist ships; 11,000 ships per year travel through the waterway. The water in the canal is 8 metres (26 ft) deep. At the maximum, the walls are 52 metres high.
Great idea, just wish it was a little sharper.
Howdie stranger!
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