This chapter traces the origin of the symbols that allowed for the transformation
of the Dolomites into a ‘new playground’. This playground emerged
not only as an alternative destination to the Western Alps, but also as an
alternative ‘community of practice’, built through the recirculation of
interaction rituals historically attached to the Grand Tour. Framed around
the concept of ‘cult geography’ three ingredients are here identified: the
distinction between ‘mountain gloom’ and ‘mountain glory’, the classical
idea of ‘grand scenery’, and the iconic notion of ‘romantic rocks’. The Grand
Tour serves as the first matrix of topographic memory for producing the
first set of iconic symbols recirculating in the ‘invention’ of the Dolomites.