Prvić (Krk)
Encyclopedia
Prvić is an uninhabited island
in the Croatia
n part of the Adriatic Sea
, located in the Kvarner Gulf
. It is the largest of the so-called Senj Islands, a group of small islands and islets located off the coast of the mainland city of Senj
, lying between the larger islands of Krk
and Rab
. Other significant islands in the Senj group are Sveti Grgur
and Goli otok
, along with a number of islets and rocks, which are all uninhabited. Prvić has an area is 12.76 km², which makes it the 30th largest Croatian island, and its coastline is 23.12 km long.
Prvić is located southeast of Krk, separated from it by a 800 m wide Senj Passage (Senjska vrata) and it is geomorphologically considered part of the same landform
as the Obzova hill, Krk's highest peak (578 meters above sea level), which forms the southwestern part of the Baška cove with the coastal town of Baška
. Prvić's southernmost cape Šilo is 4 km away from the mainland as the crow flies
and it is the point closest to mainland. Harbours nearest to Prvić are Sveti Juraj, a hamlet near Senj at the foot of the Velebit
, and Baška on the island of Krk. The island itself is shaped like a steep cliff stretching northwest-southeast and is 7.4 km long. Its westernmost point is called Debeli Art and its northernmost point is cape Brezonjin, where an automatic lighthouse
called Stražica is located.
The lighthouse was built in 1875 and consists of a small stone house and a 5 meters tall lighthouse tower. A crew of lightkeepers were stationed on the island until it was made fully automated in 1974. In 1993 the natural gas-powered system was replaced by eco-friendly solar panels and is today remotely controlled by Plovput, the state-owned company for maritime traffic which controls the entire network of Croatian lighthouses. Until 1974, the lighthouse crew were the only inhabitants of Prvić, and until the early 2000s it was believed that Prvić held the distinction of being the largest uninhabited Croatian island but this was refuted when new measurements published in 2004 showed that the island of Žut
is bigger by some 2 km2. In September 2009 the Croatian Post included the Stražica lighthouse in their lighthouse-themed series of stamps.
Three kilometers southwest of Prvić is the island of Sveti Grgur
(or Saint Gregory, also known as Šagargur, its name in the Chakavian dialect), separated from Prvić by the Grgurov kanal (Eng: Gregory's Channel). In addition, three kilometres to the south of Prvić's southernmost point, cape Šilo, is Goli otok
(lit. Barren Island). Like Prvić, both Sveti Grgur and Goli otok are today uninhabited, but they have become infamous as places where political prisoner
s were often sent in the Informbiro period between 1948 and 1956. They were used as prisons up until the late 1980s when they were shut down and abandoned.
Prvić's highest peak is Šipovac (357 meters above sea level). Although most of the island is inaccessible as its coastal areas are made up of steep barren cliffs 250-300 m high, the western slope where the lighthouse is located has several gullies
through which the island's plateau can be reached. The western side also has several coves which are suitable for swimmers, and near the beach called Njivice on the southwestern part of the island the remains of a medieval settlement owned by the House of Frankopan were found. The sea around the island is on average 70-90 meters deep, with the deepest point being at cape Šilo, where a depth of 107 meters has been recorded.
The island is also notable for the bora
wind (locally known as bura) which blows in gusts on average 203 days per year, and even reaches force of 11-12 on the Beaufort scale
(indicating a violent storm or hurricane-force winds) 73 days per year, according to weather records which used to be kept by the lighthouse crew. Because of this, Prvić is considered the windiest Croatian island. Although the island is uninhabited, it is frequently used by shepherds for pasture and by local beekeeper
s who keep apiaries
on the island. Prvić and parts of the nearby island of Krk are areas with the highest concentration of Common sage (kadulja) shrubs in the entire Croatian Adriatic, and honey produced by bees feeding on the plant's nectar is prized for its quality.
Griffon Vulture
s, a protected bird species, are known to breed at Prvić, and their colony on the island is second in size only to their main breeding ground on the island of Cres
, to the south of Prvić. The island marks the northern boundary of their coastal habitat. In addition, there are 17 species of endemic plants which grow on the island. Because of this the island of Prvić is legally protected as a botanical and bird reserve.
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
in the Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n part of the Adriatic Sea
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...
, located in the Kvarner Gulf
Kvarner Gulf
The Kvarner Gulf ); sometimes also Kvarner Bay, in Italian Quarnaro or Carnaro) is a bay in the northern Adriatic Sea, located between the Istrian peninsula and the northern Croatian seacoast....
. It is the largest of the so-called Senj Islands, a group of small islands and islets located off the coast of the mainland city of Senj
Senj
Senj , German Zengg, Hungarian Zeng and Italian Segna) is the oldest town on the upper Adriatic, and it was founded in the time before the Romans some 3000 years ago on the hill Kuk. It was the center of the Illyrian tribe Iapydes. The current settlement is situated at the foot of the slopes Mala...
, lying between the larger islands of Krk
Krk
Krk is a Croatian island in the northern Adriatic Sea, located near Rijeka in the Bay of Kvarner and part of the Primorje-Gorski Kotar county....
and Rab
Rab
Rab is an island in Croatia and a town of the same name located just off the northern Croatian coast in the Adriatic Sea.The island is long, has an area of and 9,480 inhabitants . The highest peak is Kamenjak at 408 meters...
. Other significant islands in the Senj group are Sveti Grgur
Sveti Grgur
Sveti Grgur is an uninhabited island in Croatia, on the Adriatic Sea between Rab and Krk. The island was the site of a women's prison in communist Yugoslavia from 1948 to 1988.-Literature:*Milutin Popović, Sećanja na logor Sveti Grgur...
and Goli otok
Goli otok
Goli otok is an island off the northern Adriatic coast, located between Rab's northeastern shore and the mainland, in what is today Croatia's Primorje-Gorski Kotar county. The island is barren and uninhabited...
, along with a number of islets and rocks, which are all uninhabited. Prvić has an area is 12.76 km², which makes it the 30th largest Croatian island, and its coastline is 23.12 km long.
Prvić is located southeast of Krk, separated from it by a 800 m wide Senj Passage (Senjska vrata) and it is geomorphologically considered part of the same landform
Landform
A landform or physical feature in the earth sciences and geology sub-fields, comprises a geomorphological unit, and is largely defined by its surface form and location in the landscape, as part of the terrain, and as such, is typically an element of topography...
as the Obzova hill, Krk's highest peak (578 meters above sea level), which forms the southwestern part of the Baška cove with the coastal town of Baška
Baška
At only a few hours distance from the centres of European major cities, lies Baška , a hidden gem of the Croatian Adriatic. This cultural and historical centre famous for its inscribed stone monument from 1100 and a hundred year tradition in tourism, has developed into a popular resort for a great...
. Prvić's southernmost cape Šilo is 4 km away from the mainland as the crow flies
As the crow flies
"As the crow flies" or beelining is an idiom for the shortest route between two points; the geodesic distance.An example is the great-circle distance between Key West and Pensacola, at either end of the U.S...
and it is the point closest to mainland. Harbours nearest to Prvić are Sveti Juraj, a hamlet near Senj at the foot of the Velebit
Velebit
Velebit is the largest though not the highest mountain range in Croatia. Its highest peak is the Vaganski vrh at 1757 m.The range forms a part of the Dinaric Alps and is located along the Adriatic coast, separating it from Lika in the interior...
, and Baška on the island of Krk. The island itself is shaped like a steep cliff stretching northwest-southeast and is 7.4 km long. Its westernmost point is called Debeli Art and its northernmost point is cape Brezonjin, where an automatic lighthouse
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
called Stražica is located.
The lighthouse was built in 1875 and consists of a small stone house and a 5 meters tall lighthouse tower. A crew of lightkeepers were stationed on the island until it was made fully automated in 1974. In 1993 the natural gas-powered system was replaced by eco-friendly solar panels and is today remotely controlled by Plovput, the state-owned company for maritime traffic which controls the entire network of Croatian lighthouses. Until 1974, the lighthouse crew were the only inhabitants of Prvić, and until the early 2000s it was believed that Prvić held the distinction of being the largest uninhabited Croatian island but this was refuted when new measurements published in 2004 showed that the island of Žut
Žut
Žut is an uninhabited island in the Croatian part of the Adriatic Sea, in central Dalmatia. With an area of 14.83 km² it is the 28th largest island in Croatia and the second largest island in the Kornati islands archipelago, after Kornat...
is bigger by some 2 km2. In September 2009 the Croatian Post included the Stražica lighthouse in their lighthouse-themed series of stamps.
Three kilometers southwest of Prvić is the island of Sveti Grgur
Sveti Grgur
Sveti Grgur is an uninhabited island in Croatia, on the Adriatic Sea between Rab and Krk. The island was the site of a women's prison in communist Yugoslavia from 1948 to 1988.-Literature:*Milutin Popović, Sećanja na logor Sveti Grgur...
(or Saint Gregory, also known as Šagargur, its name in the Chakavian dialect), separated from Prvić by the Grgurov kanal (Eng: Gregory's Channel). In addition, three kilometres to the south of Prvić's southernmost point, cape Šilo, is Goli otok
Goli otok
Goli otok is an island off the northern Adriatic coast, located between Rab's northeastern shore and the mainland, in what is today Croatia's Primorje-Gorski Kotar county. The island is barren and uninhabited...
(lit. Barren Island). Like Prvić, both Sveti Grgur and Goli otok are today uninhabited, but they have become infamous as places where political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
s were often sent in the Informbiro period between 1948 and 1956. They were used as prisons up until the late 1980s when they were shut down and abandoned.
Prvić's highest peak is Šipovac (357 meters above sea level). Although most of the island is inaccessible as its coastal areas are made up of steep barren cliffs 250-300 m high, the western slope where the lighthouse is located has several gullies
Gully
A gully is a landform created by running water, eroding sharply into soil, typically on a hillside. Gullies resemble large ditches or small valleys, but are metres to tens of metres in depth and width...
through which the island's plateau can be reached. The western side also has several coves which are suitable for swimmers, and near the beach called Njivice on the southwestern part of the island the remains of a medieval settlement owned by the House of Frankopan were found. The sea around the island is on average 70-90 meters deep, with the deepest point being at cape Šilo, where a depth of 107 meters has been recorded.
The island is also notable for the bora
Bora (wind)
Bora or Bura is a northern to north-eastern katabatic wind in the Adriatic, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, Italy, Greece, Slovenia, and Turkey....
wind (locally known as bura) which blows in gusts on average 203 days per year, and even reaches force of 11-12 on the Beaufort scale
Beaufort scale
The Beaufort Scale is an empirical measure that relates wind speed to observed conditions at sea or on land. Its full name is the Beaufort Wind Force Scale.-History:...
(indicating a violent storm or hurricane-force winds) 73 days per year, according to weather records which used to be kept by the lighthouse crew. Because of this, Prvić is considered the windiest Croatian island. Although the island is uninhabited, it is frequently used by shepherds for pasture and by local beekeeper
Beekeeper
A beekeeper is a person who keeps honey bees for the purposes of securing commodities such as honey, beeswax, pollen, royal jelly; pollinating fruits and vegetables; raising queens and bees for sale to other farmers; and/or for purposes satisfying natural scientific curiosity...
s who keep apiaries
Apiary
An apiary is a place where beehives of honey bees are kept. Traditionally beekeepers paid land rent in honey for the use of small parcels. Some farmers will provide free apiary sites, because they need pollination, and farmers who need many hives often pay for them to be moved to the crops when...
on the island. Prvić and parts of the nearby island of Krk are areas with the highest concentration of Common sage (kadulja) shrubs in the entire Croatian Adriatic, and honey produced by bees feeding on the plant's nectar is prized for its quality.
Griffon Vulture
Griffon Vulture
The Griffon Vulture is a large Old World vulture in the bird of prey family Accipitridae.The Griffon Vulture is long with a wingspan. In the nominate race the males weigh and females typically weigh , while in the Indian subspecies the vultures average...
s, a protected bird species, are known to breed at Prvić, and their colony on the island is second in size only to their main breeding ground on the island of Cres
Cres
Cres is an Adriatic island in Croatia. It is one of the northern island in the Kvarner Gulf and can be reached via ferry from the island Krk or from the Istrian peninsula ....
, to the south of Prvić. The island marks the northern boundary of their coastal habitat. In addition, there are 17 species of endemic plants which grow on the island. Because of this the island of Prvić is legally protected as a botanical and bird reserve.
External links
- Article about Stražica lighthouse originally published in Novi listNovi listNovi list is the oldest Croatian daily newspaper published in Rijeka. It is most read in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County of Croatia....
- Stražica lighthouse at Plovput.hr
- Stamp depicting the Stražica lighthouse issued by the Croatian Post in September 2009