Arc (Provence)

The Arc (French pronunciation: [aʁk] ) is an 83-kilometre (52 mi) long river in Southern France. It arises at an elevation of 470 metres (1,540 ft), close to the village of Pourcieux. It then passes through Aix-en-Provence before flowing into the Étang de Berre, a lagoon connected with the Mediterranean Sea to the west of Marseille. Its drainage basin, with a surface area of 716 square kilometres (276 mi2), is divided between two departments, Var and Bouches-du-Rhône. The Bayeux, the Cause and the Torse are its tributaries. The Roquefavour Aqueduct passes over the river; Paul Cézanne's Mont Sainte-Victoire and the Viaduct of the Arc River Valley is the best known piece of art representing the Arc.