Confused about Europe’s Center
PURNUSKES, Lithuania – Location of the Europe’s geographical center is as mysterious as its calculations.
In 1989, French scientists at the National French Institute of Ordnance Survey defined the borders of the European continent as the islands of Spitzbergen in the north, the Canary Islands in the south, the mountains of the Ural in the east and the islands of Azores in the west.
They forgot to include Novaya Zemlya, an island north of Russia, and Malta, an island nation in the Mediterranean.
Using these calculations, the French scientists pointed to a small village of Purnuskes, 26 kilometers north of Vilnius, as a geographical center of the European continent.
The inclusion of Malta would shift the center only about 100 meters, a sign outside the center read in several languages. It quickly adds that no matter how you slice the pie, the center will end up somewhere in Lithuania.
A Wikipedia entry tells a different story.
Being a geographical center of Europe claim at least five other places outside Lithuania. A point on the island of Saaremaa in Estonia is rumored to be one such place. Also, the list includes, the village of Krahule, near Kremnica in central Slovakia (seriously? Sl;ovakia?); the small town of Rakhiv, or the village of Dilove near Rakhiv, in western Ukraine; Suchowola, north of Bialystok, in north-eastern Poland; Babruysk or Vitebsk in Belarus;
Apparently, in finding out the center of Europe one need to consider political consequences.
A rock marks the center of Europe in Lithuania. It’s a lucky rock bestowing inexpensive luck because visitors tend leave small Lithuanian change on top of it.
I became 1 litas richer as I don’t believe in it.
A golden starry crown tops a giant granite column erected in the center to mark Lithuania’s entry into the European Union on May 1, 2004.
Near the column, a marble mosaic of a NATO logo marks Lithuania’s entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
A row of flags of nations who are members of the European Union weaves around a miniature amphitheater, making me wonder if there’s anything European outside the EU borders.
Photo courtesy of Baltic Features: Beam me Up, Scotty - I am near the center of Europe plus/minus 100 kilometers
November 29th, 2007 at 20.31
“I became 1 litas richer as I don’t believe in it.”
Hey ! That was mine !