Ras ben Sakka

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Coordinates: 37 ° 20 ′ 50 ″  N , 9 ° 44 ′ 42 ″  E

Relief Map: Tunisia
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Ras ben Sakka​
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Tunisia

Ras ben Sakka ( Arabic رأس بن سكة, German Cape Ben Sakka ) is a cape in Tunisia and the northernmost point of the African mainland.

geography

Located on the Mediterranean Sea , it is around 187 km south of Sardinia at the northern end of the Ras Angela ( Cape Angela , also Cap Engela ) section, which is sometimes given instead of Cape ben Sakka. 8.2 km to the west is the Ra's al-Abyad or "White Cape" ( Cap Blanc ). It is often wrongly stated as the northernmost mainland of Africa, but is actually about one kilometer further south. According to other sources, the White Cape is only 950 m further east and 30 m further south, but the maps cannot confirm this.

The cape is located around 13 kilometers northwest of the next town, Bizerte, and is part of the governorate of the same name . 18 km to the south is the large Ichkeul Lake in the world natural heritage of the Ichkeul National Park. In 2014, a monument was inaugurated at Ras ben Sakka, showing the metal outlines of the African states, to officially define the cape as the northernmost mainland point. Ras ben Sakka is located at the end of an approximately 70 m long headland, in front of it are a small rock island in the west and a larger rock island in the north (dimensions approx. 70 × 70 m), separated by an approx. 35 m wide canal. Another north-facing peninsula can be found about 230 meters further west.

The area around the cape is rocky and sandy. The Ras ben Sakka lighthouse is located 600 m to the southeast , and an unpaved road leads to the cape. One kilometer southeast is a small settlement with almost 50 houses. Some historians identify Ras ben Sakka with the "Beautiful Cape" referred to in treaties between the Roman Empire and Carthage .

gallery

  • Ras ben Sakka

  • Monument at the cape

  • another monument

See also

Web links

  • Detailed map of the coastline with the position of Ras ben Sakka and Ra's al-Abyad

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Hugh Chisholm, ed .: Africa , Encyclopaedia Britannica , 11th edition , 1911. Cambridge University Press, S. 320th
  2. ↑ World Atlas; ed. GV Posdnjak, Onyx 2010, pp. 138-139. ISBN 978-5-85120-295-7 (cartography), ISBN 978-5-488-02609-4 (onyx).
  3. ↑ Appendix II: The Geography of Africa , Encyclopedia of the Peoples of Africa and the Middle East. P. 764, section Geographical Limits . Infobase Publishing, 2009.
  4. ^ Tunisian Ras Angela declared Africa's northernmost point , ANSA med, December 2, 2014
  5. ↑ Data from Google Maps and OpenStreetMap ( Link )
  6. ^ The Land, chapter 1 , in: Africa: Facts and Figures; EBSCO Publishing, January 1, 2005
  7. ↑ Ilja Schifman: Carthage . St. Petersburg University Publishing House, 2006 .; 155. ISBN 5-288-03714-0 .