The Painted Cliffs

Robert Downie - Laguna, Australia

Traces of iron oxides have created patterns over the millennia as ground water percolates through the rock face at the painted cliffs on Maria island. Sea spray then hits the sandstone forming crystals of salt which alter weathering dynamics and cause its present day honeycomb pattern. Maria Island is a remote mountainous island located in the Tasman Sea, off the east coast of Tasmania, Australia. The island was named in 1642 by Dutch explorer Abel Tasman after Maria van Diemen (née van Aelst). www.robertdowniephotography.com Love Life, Love Photography