The Monviso massif and the Cottian Alps as symbols of the Alpine chain and geological heritage in Piemonte, Italy.

The Monviso Massif (MM) geothematic area is one of the most outstanding symbols of the Alps in general, and of the Cottian Alps in particular. In the framework of the “Proactive Management of Geological Heritage in the Piemonte Region” (PROGEO-Piemonte) Project, we propose a comprehensive study involving the MM area itself together with nearby, geologically related areas. More specifically, a number of different geologic topics involving different expertises and some additional non-geological disciplines are considered: 1) A WHOLE OCEAN IN A SMALL PEBBLE: some of the best preserved ophiolites in the Alps at the MM and the associated Cu-Fe mineralizations; 2) THE GEOLOGICAL ARCHITECTURE OF THE COTTIAN ALPS: lithostructural units of the Dora-Maira Unit and Piemonte domain from Susa to Varaita Valleys; 3) PETROGRAPHY TOGETHER WITH PREHISTORY: the first primary source of jade in the Alps at Punta Rasciassa in the MM, and its importance in terms of Neolithic to Bronze-age polished stone implements; 4) TYPE LOCALITIES FOR NEW MINERALS: the carlosturanite first found and described at Sampeyre, Val Varaita, as well as other minerals as for instance the ellenbergerite, bearthite, Mg-staurolite, Mg-dumortierite in lower Val Varaita; 5) A GEOMORPHOLOGIC AID TO RECONSTRUCTIVE GEOARCHEOLOGY: the area, now buried under a debris flow, where Hannibal is thought to have regrouped his army while crossing the Alps in the upper Po valley, downstream from Colle delle Traversette in the Cottian Alps north of MM; 6) THE ROCK-DWELLING ORGANISMS ON THE OPHIOLITIC ROCKS: the biodiversity of lichens, microfungi and cyanobacteria colonizing the ophiolites, which can give additional value for the environmental assessment and valorization of the MM outcrops.