Flannan Isles

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Flannan Isles
Lighthouse on the main island of Eilean Mor
Lighthouse on the main island of Eilean Mor
Waters Atlantic Ocean
Geographical location 58 ° 17 ′  N , 7 ° 36 ′  W Coordinates: 58 ° 17 ′  N , 7 ° 36 ′  W
Map of Flannan Isles
Number of islands 8 (and numerous stacs )
Main island Eilean Mòr
Total land area 0.588.7 km²
Residents uninhabited
Eilean a 'Ghobha and Roareim, the two westernmost of the Flannan Isles
Eilean a 'Ghobha and Roareim , the two westernmost of the Flannan Isles

The Flannan Isles ( Scottish Gaelic : na h-Eileanan Flannach ? / I ) are an uninhabited group of eight islands and numerous Stacs with a total area of ​​almost 59 hectares in the Outer Hebrides in northwestern Scotland . They are separated from the Isle of Lewis by an inlet 28 kilometers wide . Audio file / audio sample

geography

The Flannan Isles are divided into three separate groups.

  • The eastern group consists essentially of Eilean Mòr (English: Big Isle), Eilean Tighe (House Isle) and the two Stacs Lamh a 'Sgeir Mhor and Lamh a' Sgeir Bheag.
  • The southern group is 650 meters south of the eastern group and consists mainly of the three islands Soray (Eastward Isle), Sgeir Toman and Sgeir Righinn.
  • The most important islands of the western group, which lies 2.7 km further west, are Roareim, Eilean a 'Ghobha (Isle of the Blacksmith) and Bròna Cleit (Sad Sunk Rock), the latter without vegetation, as well as the Stac Sgeir nan Eoin.

Eilean Mòr with 18 hectares and Eilean Tighe with 8 hectares are the two largest islands in the entire group.

The archipelago extends over 5.5 kilometers from west to east and 1.9 kilometers from north to south. The geographic extreme points of the archipelago are on the following islands or stacs:

  • northernmost: Eilean Mòr
  • easternmost: Lamh a 'Sgeir Mhor
  • southernmost: Sgeir Righinn
  • westernmost: Bròna Cleit

history

Several fatal accidents occurred on the main island of Eilean Mòr during the construction of the lighthouse in 1899. In December 1900 three lighthouse keepers disappeared under unknown circumstances. This led to the emergence of the riddle of Eilean Mòr with a wide public interest and numerous scientific, literary and parapsychological attempts at explanation. The happenings around the lighthouse formed the thematic background for the song The Mystery of Flannan Isle Lighthouse, composed in 1968 by the rock band Genesis , which was first published in 1998 on Genesis Archive I - 1967–1975 . It was also the basis for Peter Maxwell Davies ' opera The Lighthouse (1979).

Web links

Commons : Flannan Isles  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Information on informaworld.com (English; PDF)
Map of the islands from 1898