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SQUARE-HOUSE
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GEOLOGICAL STRUCTURE OF LANDSCAPE, DRY-STONE WALL The geological structure of the area spreading from the sea, i.e. Istra, to the Sežana Karst is very diverse indeed. This is clearly reflected in the area's landscape, in the structure of settlements, and its architecture. In the hilly Istra the grey, bluish or greenish sandstone, i.e. flysch mixed with the layers of marl, is prevalent. Here the soft flysch countryside gradually transforms into the hard limestone country of the so-called Little and Podgorski Karsts, mostly on the very steep and precipitous walls of Kraški rob (Karst Edge). The basic component here is limestone, at places still mixed with flysch patches, although with all the features of the Karst: collapse dolines, sinkholes, scarps and underground caves. On the other side of Matarsko podolje, the countryside begins to rise and reaches Brkini, which consists of clayey sandstone and marl. Together with the part of Čičarija, it covers an extensive woody region, with steep slopes and narrow, moist valleys. In the northwest, Brkini descends into the broad Vremska valley, interwoven with tributaries and channels of the Reka river, which under Škocjan disappears in a deep canyon. Here the sandy alluvia gradually transform into limestone and softly merge with the Upper Karst, marked with large limestone dells, karst caves and extensive vales. The karst limestone ground is full of the so-called dead stone, which is unsui  |