All over the Mediterranean region, earthquakes have created a huge network of cracks in the ground. These faults provide pathways for all kinds of stuff to rise up to the top from deep below – gases, elements, molten lava. Sometimes what comes up is good for us, sometimes bad. Just as it can be a kill or cure for an individual, so it can contribute to the rise and fall of entire civilisations. As a geologist, Iain sidesteps the tour guides of the Med and shows us how cracks in the Earth have changed the course of human history. We look at earthquakes in Turkey; the health spa and entrance to hell at Pamukkale (good water and bad gas); a theory that asphalt is behind the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah; how the use of copper and tin brought about the Bronze Age and how lead poisoned the Romans. We also include volcanic eruptions at Santorini.
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