Sprogø
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sprogø is a small, protected Danish island, which is located in the Great Belt, the strait that separates the main islands of Funen and Zealand. It lies almost exactly halfway across the strait, 6.7 km from the Zealand shore and 8 km from the Funen shore.
Today, the island forms part of the Great Belt fixed link, and is connected to Funen by a road and rail bridge, and to Zealand by both a road suspension bridge and twin rail tunnels. The island is crossed when using the link. During the construction, the island was drastically remodelled, with land reclamation increasing its area from 38 to 154 hectares.
There are remains of buildings on the original part of Sprogø from the beginning of the 1100s. During construction work, extensive archaeological investigations were undertaken, and among other findings it was revealed that the first inhabitants arrived more than 8000 years ago.
The island has no permanent population today, but is used by Sund og Bælt, the company that owns and operates the bridges. It is also a nature reserve, and tours of the island are organised.
[edit] External links
- Sund & Bælt Photo Archive: Sprogø island – construction photos including aerial shots of Sprogø in its original form (log in using the default username and password)
- Sprogø, -øen i midten (Danish) – History of Sprogø; many images of the island
- Sprogø fyr (Danish) – about Sprogø lighthouse; many photographs
