Image by flickr user cod_gabriel.
Likely one of the most awe-inspiring examples of Cable Propelled Transit and/or gondola transit are the deeply vernacular Meteora Cable Cars.
A Unesco World Heritage site, The Meteora are a series of Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Northern Greece dating from the 14th and 15th centuries. All are located hundreds of meters in the sky atop large sandstone pillars.
Given the – to say the least – unique topographical challenges, the Monks appear to have turned to a little bit of cable innovation to solve some of their transport difficulties.
This shouldn’t really surprise. After all, cable has had a vast and measurable role in alpine construction settings (see here, for example) for quite literally thousands of years. One can reasonably and logically assume, therefore, that cable had a direct role in the creation of Meteora.
It’s admittedly difficult to tell the extent of the system used throughout the 6 different monasteries. Again, little information exists about the lifts specifically and most images we could find were of a single line. But as you’ll see below, there are at least 2 different cabins suggesting either multiple lines or the ability to switch cabins on the same line.
Nevertheless, if cable transit’s good enough for God . . .
Image by flickr user George Terezakis.
Image by flickr user Jaime Perez.
Image by flickr user Mr. Theklan
Image by flickr user zsenya
Image by reisende-unter-der-sonne
Image by flickr users Neil and Kathy Carey
Image by flickr user Mr. Theklan
Image by flickr user Multitude
3 Comments
That’s pretty amazing. Are they mechanically driven?
I’d have to assume so. Alternatively, it would be amazing to see 14 monks pulling on a rope to drag the gondola back-and-forth.
gives new meaning to the phrase “leap of FAITH”, eh?