Lago Gerundo, Ancient lake in Lombardy, Italy
Lago Gerundo was a large lake in Lombardy that stretched across several provinces between Bergamo, Milan, Lodi, and Cremona. The water body was fed by several rivers including the Adda, Serio, Brembo, and Molgora.
Organized drainage of the lake began during Roman times to expand farmland in the fertile plains. The complete draining process took many centuries and was finally finished by the 13th century.
The name comes from the Latin word "Gerendus," meaning marshy ground. Local people told stories for centuries about Tarantasio, a mythological dragon said to live in these waters.
Today the former lake bed is a drained area across the Lombardy plains that can be explored by traveling through the old lake floor. The area is agricultural and accessible by various routes across the region.
What made this body of water remarkable was its size, stretching roughly 50 kilometers in one direction and 25 kilometers in another. These dimensions made it a major feature of the northern Italian landscape before it vanished completely.
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