User:Ben MacDui/Sandbox3
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| Scottish Island of
Ben MacDui/Sandbox3 |
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|---|---|
| Location | |
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| OS grid reference: | NM323355 |
| Names | |
| Gaelic or Celtic name: | |
| Norse name: | stafi-oy |
| Meaning of name: | Old Norse for 'stave or pillar island'. |
| Area and Summit | |
| Area: | 33 ha |
| Area rank if >40 ha: | 0 |
| Highest elevation: | 42 m |
| Population | |
| Population: | Uninhabited since 1800 |
| Population rank: | 0 out of 89 |
| Main settlement: | none |
| Groupings | |
| Island Group: | Mull |
| Local Authority: | Argyll and Bute |
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| References: | [1][2] |
Staffa (Norse for stave or pillar island) is an island of the Inner Hebrides in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The Vikings gave it this name as its columnar basalt reminded them of their houses, which were built from vertically placed tree-logs.[3]
Staffa lies about 10 km (6 mi) west of Mull, and 9 km northeast of Iona. It is longitudinally oriented north-south, and is a kilometre long by about half a kilometre wide. The circumference is almost 3 km (1¾ mi), the area is 33 ha[4] and and the highest point is 42 m (135 ft) above sea level.
Contents |
[edit] Geology and Pre-history
In pre-historic times Staffa was covered by the ice sheets which spread from Scotland out into the Atlantic Ocean beyond the Outer Hebrides. After the last retreat of the ice around 20,000 years ago, sea levels were up to 400 feet lower than at present. Although the isostatic rise of land makes estimating post-glacial coastlines a complex task, circa 14,000 BP it is likely that Staffa was a larger island, just off the coast of mainland Scotland, which at that time would have included what is now the Isle of Mull, Iona and the Treshnish Isles.[3]
Steadily rising sea levels since that time then further isolated this little island, which is entirely of volcanic origin. It is comprised of a basement of tuff, underneath colonnades of a black fine-grained Tertiary basalt, overlying which is a third layer of basaltic lava lacking a crystalline structure. By contrast, slow cooling of the second layer of basalt resulted in an extraordinary pattern of hexagonal and pentagonal columns which form the faces and walls of the principal caves.[1] Similar formations are found at the Giant's Causeway In Ireland, and Ardmeanach on the Isle of Mull.[5]
[edit] Geography
In the northeast the isle shelves to a shore, but otherwise the coast is rugged and much indented, numerous caves having been carved out by rain, stream and ocean. There is enough grass on the surface to feed a few cattle, and the island contains a spring.
On the east coast are Goat Cave and Clamshell Cave. The latter is 10 m (30 ft) high, about 6 m (18 ft) wide at the entrance, some 45 m (130 ft) long, and on one side of it the ridges of basalt stand out like the ribs of a ship. Near this cave is the pyramidal rock islet of Am Buachaille (Scots Gaelic: The Herdsman), a pile of basalt columns fully seen only at low tide. Other outlying rocks include Eilean Dubh to the north-west and a series of skerries stretching for half a kilometre to the south-west. On the southwest shore are Boat Cave and Mackinnon’s Cave (named after an 15th Century Abbot of Iona), which has a tunnel connecting it to Cormorant Cave. These caves lie to the south-west and can be accessed from the bay of Port an Fhasgaidh at low tide.
Staffa's most famous cave however, is Fingal's Cave. This a huge sea-cave near the southern tip of the island some 20 m high and 75 m long formed in cliffs of hexagonal basalt columns called the Colonnade or The Great Face that inspired Felix Mendelssohn's Die Hebriden (English: Hebrides Overture opus 26),[6] which was premiered in London in 1832.[7] The original gaelic name is An Uamh Bhin - 'the melodious cave' but it was subsequently renamed after the 3rd Century Irish warrior Fionn MacCool.[1][8] Mendelssohn was nonetheless inspired by the sound of the waves in the cave and waxed lyrical about his visit, claiming that he went there:
with a rake for folk-songs, an ear for the lovely, fragrant countryside, and a heart for the bare legs of the natives.[9]
[edit] History
The island was originally part of the Ulva estate of the MacQuarries until 1777. It was brought to the English-speaking world's attention after a visit by Sir Joseph Banks (later a president of the Royal Society) in 1772. Despite becoming infested with lice during his short stay on the island he provided glowing reports of his visit.[1]. He wrote that he was:
forced to acknowledge that this piece of architecture, formed by nature, far surpasses that of the Louvre, that of St. Peter at Rome, all that remains of Palmyra and Paestum, and all that the genius, the taste and the luxury of the Greeks were capable of inventing.
Subsequently a stream of famous visitors came to view Staffa's wonders including Robert Adam, Sir Walter Scott (1810), John Keats (1818), JMW Turner (1830), William Wordsworth (1833), Queen Victoria and Prince Albert (1836), Jules Verne (1839), David Livingston (1864), Robert Louis Stevenson (1870) and Mendellssohn himself in 1829.[5]
Wordsworth was clearly disappointed by the volume of tourism, writing:
- We saw, but surely in the motley crowd
- Not one of us has felt, the far-famed sight:
- How could we feel it? Each the others blight,
- Hurried and hurrying volatile and loud.[10]
However inspiring the scenery, it was not an easy place to live. In 1772 there was but a single family living on a diet of barley oats, flax and potatoes, and whatever their grazing animals could provide.[1] By the end of the eighteenth century they had deserted Staffa, apparently terrified by the severity of winter storms.[5] Signs of of ‘rig and furrow’ agriculture can still be seen on the island but the only surviving building is the ruin of a 19th century shelter for travellers.[11] By 1800 the island was under the ownership of Colin MacDonald of Loch Boisdale. In 1816 it was sold by a Ranald MacDonald into the care of trustees. There were several private owners during the twentieth century[1] until finally the island was gifted to the National Trust for Scotland by Jock Elliot Jr. of New York in 1986 as an imaginative way to honour the 60th birthday of his wife, Eleanor. A grateful National Trust bestowed upon her the honorific 'Steward of Staffa'.[12]
[edit] Wildlife
In 1800 there were three red deer on the island, subsequently replaced by goats and then a small herd of black cattle. Today the summer grazing benefits sheep.[1]
Puffin, kittiwake, shag and gulls nest on the island and the surrounding waters provide a livelihood for numerous seabirds, grey seals, dolphins, basking sharks and minke and pilot whales.[11]
[edit] Visiting Staffa
Boat trips from Oban, Dervaig, Fionnphort and Iona to Staffa allow visitors to view caves and the puffins that nest on the island between May and September.[13]
There is a landing place used by the tourist boats just north of Am Buachaille but landings are only possible in very calm conditions and the island lacks a genuine anchorage.[1]
[edit] Miscellany
The Swiss town of Stäfa on Lake Zurich was named after the island of Staffa by a monk from Iona.[1]
In 1945 a mine exploded near Boat Cave causing damage to the cliff face which is still visible.[1]
In a 2005 poll of Radio Times readers, Staffa was named as the 8th greatest natural wonder in Britain.[14]
[edit] See also
National Trust for Scotland: Fingal's Cave
[edit] References and Footnotes
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Haswell-Smith, Hamish. (2004) The Scottish Islands. Edinburgh. Canongate.
- ^ Ordnance Survey 1:50,000 First Series (1976) Sheet 48
- ^ a b Murray, W.H. (1973) The Islands of Western Scotland. London. Eyre Methuen.
- ^ This is Haswell-Smith's estimate. Keay (1994) states 28 ha.
- ^ a b c Keay, J. & Keay, J. (1994) Collins Encyclopaedia of Scotland. London. HarperCollins.
- ^ Galveston Symphony Program Notes: Mendelssohn Retrieved 10 December 2006.
- ^ Program Notes: Mendelssohn: "Hebrides" Overture by Geoff Kuenning Retrieved 10 December 2006.
- ^ Keay (1994) states that the re-naming was done by Banks, although showcaves.com states that Mendelssohn is blamed for the 'misnaming'.
- ^ The New Encyclopedia Brittanica (1978) Chicago. Encyclopedia Brittanica Inc.
- ^ Quoted by Haswell-Smith (2004).
- ^ a b Scottish Natural Heritage:Staffa Retrieved 10 December 2006.
- ^ Obituaries:Eleanor Elliot (8 December 2006) The Scotsman newspaper. Edinburgh.
- ^ Show Caves of the World Retrieved 10 December 2006.
- ^ BBC report of poll result Retrieved 10 December 2006.
