Egg Island, St Helena
| Egg Island | |
| Location | |
| Location: | 57°42’27"S, 63°40’25"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | Unihabited |
Egg Island lies of the west coast of St Helena, the main island of the territory of St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. It is close to the coast but distant from any settlement or the course of any road, four and half miles south-west of Jamestown.
This is a small island, separated from St Helena itself by a narrow channel, precipitous, rocky and with every inch dripping white with thick layers of bird droppings. Egg Island is an important breeding spot for seabirds.
The name "Egg Island" comes from its shape in profile, like a giant egg rising out of the sea. It reaches a maximum height of 260 feet.
Notwithstanding its current appearance, Egg Island was once occupied as a fortification: at the top are the ruins of Cockburn's Battery built by the East India Company during Napoleon's exile on St Helena (1815 – 1821): it was the only battery built during that period and the only one built off the main island.[1]
References
- ↑ St Helena's Batteries – St Helena Island Info