The world of 18th century pirates was filled with
ghosts, sea monsters, and even Phantom Islands. A phantom island is a
supposedly real island that appeared on maps for a period of time (sometimes
centuries) during recorded history, but was later proven not to exist.
The most famous phantom island is probably Atlantis. This
large island (or small continent, depending on who you listen to) was first recorded
by the ancient Greek philosopher Plato. He claimed that Atlantis was located “past
the pillars of Hercules” – in other words, outside the familiar Mediterranean
Sea, in the wide ocean that was eventually named after it.
Plato was trying to make a point about pride. His story
tells of a technologically advanced society that fell out of favor with the
gods because of the arrogance of its leaders. In his story, Atlantis eventually
sank beneath the waves.
This mythical place inspired the name of the Atlantic Ocean,
and other imaginary islands have inspired names for real land forms. One is
Brasil or Hy-Brasil, an island traditionally believed to lay off the west coast
of Ireland. Supposedly, it was shrouded in mist, and could only be seen once
every seven years. When explorers saw the South American mainland rising out of
the morning mists, they must have thought of Ireland’s imaginary twin.
How do the stories of Phantom Islands begin?
Sometimes, they are started by mirages. Just as the desert
can provide images of water to travelers, the sea can offer up imaginary lands.
Temperature inversions – layers of warm air laying above cooler air – can actually
bend light, making a small object appear to be a towering mass. These kinds of
inversions are rare, but can give a definite impression of land.
Another way that a phantom island can be recorded is that
the explorer is simply lost. This happened a lot more 300-500 years ago. Misplaced
travelers saw Greenland, or Africa, or Japan, when they believed they were far
away from those locations, and thought they’d found something new. This is probably
the origin of St Mathew Island, said to lie off the coast of Africa. Sailors
who reported seeing it were probably looking at Ascension Island, which really
does exist.
Once an island had been put on a map, there was social
pressure for voyagers to confirm its existence. A sailor stands in a bar (or an
officer stands before his superiors) and tells a tale of his travels. “Oh, you
were near Saint Brendan’s Isle!” says someone. “Did you see it?”
What’s a man to do? “Of course I saw it!”
Some phantoms, such as Saxemberg Island, may have actually
existed. It was discovered in 1670, and spotted again in 1804, 1809, and 1816,
always in exactly the same location. This island is so well reported that it
may have once existed… A piece of land that sank under the sea in some volcanic
event.
Plenty of real things have been mistaken for islands. Ice
bergs, fog banks, floating masses of seaweed (especially with the help of
temperature inversions that makes them seem mountainous.) Antarctica has inspired several phantoms, The
Terra Nova islands, for instance, were discovered in near Antarctica 1968, and haven’t been seen
since.
Some phantoms are philosophical construction. Rupes Nigra
was an island invented in the 14th century
to explain why compasses point north. Since no one yet knew about the Earth’s
magnetic poles, someone invented a magnetic, black island at the exact place we
now call magnetic north.
Some phantoms islands were deliberate fabrications. When
money is involved, all things are possible. Croakerland, for instance, was a
hoax invented by the famous Arctic explorer, Robert E. Peary, to gain more
financial aid from one of his financial bankers, George Crocker. And Isles
Phelipeaux and Pontchartrain were invented in the Great Lake Superior in 1744 to
persuade French financial backers to cough up more money for further
explorations in the area.
But there are plenty of honest explorers out there, too. Johan
Otto Polter, found an island he named Kantia. In
1884. But when he returned later, in four expeditions through 1909, he failed
to find it again, and disproved the island's existence.
Map of The Island of California |
One of the most famous cartographical errors in history is
the description of California as an island. This may have been inspired by
fiction. A 1510 Spanish romance novel Las
sergas de Esplandián by Garci RodrÃguez de Montalvo - described the island
in this passage:
Actual Strait of Baja |
Men love those sex-starved Amazons. Whether it was this titillating
tale, or an offer by the King of Spain that explorers could lay claim to any
new islands they found, but could not similarly profit from discoveries of new
sections of mainland, California was shown as an island for nearly 200 years.
Maybe not what they had in mind |
Which leads us to one of the most enduring parts of Phantom
Islands… their tendency to endure. Once put onto a chart, the predisposition is
for the island to stay put. After all, to erase it is, in effectively call its
discoverer either a liar or a fool. So, even today, a few unlikely islands and
reefs still endure. Once such is Yosemite Rock, “discovered” in 1903, and
supposed to be approximately 83°W, 32°S (Northwest of Robinson Crusoe Island).
With all our technology, it’s never been officially disproved. Instead, in the Operational
Navigation Chart of the United States Department of Defense it is listed as "Existence
doubtful."
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