Romas
October 22nd, 2004, 08:43 PM
The Centre of Europe is situated 26 km North of Vilnius, by the road A-14 Vilnius – Utena.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v447/Romas2/LT%20etc/19940013ec.jpg
Information of the Centre of Europe :
Several countries claim to be at the heart of Europe, but according to the research of the French National geographic institute the one and the only geographical central point of the continent is in Lithuania, a fact that has even won recognition in the Guinness Book of World records.
In 1989 a group of French scientists from the institute of announced that the geographical centre of Europe was just to the north of the Lithuanian capital Vilnius – 26 kilometres to be exact – near the village of Purnuškės.
The map references of that version of the centres of Europe are 54°54’ latitude and 25°19’ longitude. These references were defined only after re-estimation of the boundaries of European continent. The northern point was defined Spitsbergen 80°45’N- 20°35’E), the Southern point is the Canary Islands (27°36’N-17°58’W) the Eastern point at the crest of Urals (67°59’N-56°10’E) and the western point is Azores (39°27’N-31°16’W).
The boundary of the continent runs along the Kara River, the highest crest of the Urals, along the Ural River and the Caspian sea, along the Apsheron Peninsula, over the highest crest of the Caucasian mountains, through the Black Sea and the channels of the Dardanelle and the Bosphorus, along the Eastern shore of the Aegean – the border between Greece and turkey – and through the Mediterranean Sea and the Gibraltar channel.
According to these estimates of the boundaries of Europe, the Canary Islands, Madeira and the Azores, were attached to Europe together with Iceland. The scientists did not take into account the location of Malta in the middle of Mediterranean, however, this would change the location of the geographical centre of Europe by only 100 metres.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v447/Romas2/LT%20etc/19940012.jpg
A reserve for the European Geographical Centre was arranged in 1992. It covered Girija Lake, Bernotai Hill and a burial mound for pagans called an alkakalnis, as well as surrounding woods and fields.
On 1 May 2004, the date Lithuania entered European Union, a famous Lithuanian sculptor Gediminas Jokubonis unveiled at the site his composition of a column of white granite, the top of which is rimmed by a crown of stars.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v447/Romas2/LT%20etc/19940011.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v447/Romas2/LT%20etc/19940010.jpg
It would be interesting to see pictures of the other centres of Europe in Czech Republic, Poland (Suchowola), Ukraine (Delove near Rakhiv), in Germany, etc. etc.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v447/Romas2/LT%20etc/19940013ec.jpg
Information of the Centre of Europe :
Several countries claim to be at the heart of Europe, but according to the research of the French National geographic institute the one and the only geographical central point of the continent is in Lithuania, a fact that has even won recognition in the Guinness Book of World records.
In 1989 a group of French scientists from the institute of announced that the geographical centre of Europe was just to the north of the Lithuanian capital Vilnius – 26 kilometres to be exact – near the village of Purnuškės.
The map references of that version of the centres of Europe are 54°54’ latitude and 25°19’ longitude. These references were defined only after re-estimation of the boundaries of European continent. The northern point was defined Spitsbergen 80°45’N- 20°35’E), the Southern point is the Canary Islands (27°36’N-17°58’W) the Eastern point at the crest of Urals (67°59’N-56°10’E) and the western point is Azores (39°27’N-31°16’W).
The boundary of the continent runs along the Kara River, the highest crest of the Urals, along the Ural River and the Caspian sea, along the Apsheron Peninsula, over the highest crest of the Caucasian mountains, through the Black Sea and the channels of the Dardanelle and the Bosphorus, along the Eastern shore of the Aegean – the border between Greece and turkey – and through the Mediterranean Sea and the Gibraltar channel.
According to these estimates of the boundaries of Europe, the Canary Islands, Madeira and the Azores, were attached to Europe together with Iceland. The scientists did not take into account the location of Malta in the middle of Mediterranean, however, this would change the location of the geographical centre of Europe by only 100 metres.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v447/Romas2/LT%20etc/19940012.jpg
A reserve for the European Geographical Centre was arranged in 1992. It covered Girija Lake, Bernotai Hill and a burial mound for pagans called an alkakalnis, as well as surrounding woods and fields.
On 1 May 2004, the date Lithuania entered European Union, a famous Lithuanian sculptor Gediminas Jokubonis unveiled at the site his composition of a column of white granite, the top of which is rimmed by a crown of stars.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v447/Romas2/LT%20etc/19940011.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v447/Romas2/LT%20etc/19940010.jpg
It would be interesting to see pictures of the other centres of Europe in Czech Republic, Poland (Suchowola), Ukraine (Delove near Rakhiv), in Germany, etc. etc.