Mouths of the Rhône

The Rhône divides below Arles before reaching the Mediterranean, enclosing the low delta of the Camargue between its branches. Marshes, lagoons and sandbanks mark the meeting of river and sea, while salt gathers in the shallow waters. The saltworks of Peccais, west of the Little Rhône, were acquired by Philip IV of France in 1290. In the early eighteenth century canals linking the ponds to the Rhône were connected to the Canal du Midi at Sète, improving the transport of salt.