Hven

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Map of Hven from the Blaeu Atlas 1663

Backafall, the east coast of Hven

Hven or Ven is a small Swedish island in the Öresund strait, between Scania and Zealand (Denmark). It belongs to the Landskrona municipality. The island has 371 inhabitants. During the 1930's, the population was at its record, ca 1 300.

The island was historically under Danish rule, but it fell to Swedish hands in 1660, two years after the Treaty of Roskilde. Astronomer Tycho Brahe (1546-1601) built two observatories here, Uraniborg and Stjerneborg.

There are three villages on the island: Bäckviken, Tuna By and Kyrkbacken.

Hven has ferries to Landskrona, Helsingborg and, in the summer only, to Copenhagen. The ferries land in Bäckviken.

The island is a popular tourist place, especially in summer. It is sometimes called "The pearl of Öresund".

Backafall on Ven is named in Gabriel Jönssons poem Vid vakten.

As the earth is rich of moraine, it is good for agriculture. Durum and grapes are planted here.