The Col de Braus (Maritime Alps, SE France): an Historical Geological Locality with High Geoheritage Value

The Col de Braus section (Maritime Alps, SE France) offers a continuous and beautiful exposure of the Jurassic-Cretaceous Provenal succession and the lower part of the Alpine Foreland Basin succession, over a total thickness of about 1200 m. This stratigraphic succession is the result of a long geological history, corresponding to a time span of about 130 Myr, and records different stages of the evolution of the palaeo-European passive margin of the Alpine Tethys and the subsequent development of the Alpine Foreland Basin. The Col de Braus section represents a classic locality for the geology of the Maritime Alps and of SE France in general. It has been known since the late eighteenth century and is here identified as a highly significant geological heritage, due to its multiple interests which go far beyond scientific value. A geological itinerary along the Col de Braus section is also proposed, which is developed along a main road and can be enjoyed by both specialists and a general public thanks to the multiple levels of information offered by the selected outcrops.