Seven Coloured Earths, Geological formation in Chamarel, Mauritius.

Seven Coloured Earths is a small area of undulating low mounds of bare, finely granular earth in the Chamarel plain, banded in rust red, orange, ochre, tan, brown and pale yellow, with darker reddish-brown crests. Rain has carved patterns into the hillside, and the coloured ground runs to a low wooden railing and a line of dense green trees.

The coloured earths formed from basalt lava that decomposed into clay and then, through total hydrolysis under tropical weathering, into ferralitic soil; leaching removed soluble components such as silica, leaving iron oxide and aluminium hydroxide that produce the red, anthracite and blue-purple tones. The site has been one of Mauritius' main tourist attractions since the 1960s and is privately owned.

The name "Seven Coloured Earths" is descriptive rather than official; French sources call the site Terres des Sept Couleurs, and variants such as Chamarel Coloured Earths are also used. Curio shops on the island and at the ticket booth at the entrance sell small test tubes filled with the coloured earths as souvenirs.

The site lies in the Chamarel plain of Rivière Noire District, reached mainly by bus or taxi because of its remote position. Entry is paid at the single parking and turning area a few metres from the earths and the adjoining visitor facilities. Walking on the rock surface is forbidden; visitors view it from observation outposts along the wooden fence.

The site is private land, and the German sources note that visitors are often told the mounds are sand that rain never mixes; in fact the material is weathered lava rock. Small tubes of the coloured earth are sold at the ticket booth and in souvenir shops across the island.