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Coronado Islands
The Coronado Islands (Islas Coronado or Islas Coronados; English: Islands of the Coronation(s); Kumeyaay: Mat hasil ewik kakap) are a group of islands located 13 km (8 mi) off the northwest coast of the Mexican state of Baja California. Battered by the wind and waves, the rocky islands are mostly uninhabited except for a small military detachment and a lighthouse keeper. Despite their barren appearance, they serve as a refuge for seabirds and support a sizable number of plants, including 6 endemic taxa found only on the islands. The waters around the islands support a considerable amount of diverse marine life.
Used extensively and intermittently by the indigenous peoples for thousands of years, the first European explorers sighted them in 1542. Centuries later, they served as weekend getaway locations, secret gambling spots, and smuggling sites until the Mexican Navy clamped down on trespassing. The tied island city of Coronado, California, 27 km (17 mi) to the north, was named in honor of the islands after an 1886 naming competition. During World War II, the islands were utilized in joint training exercises between Mexico and the United States, but gained notoriety when future founder of Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard, shelled the inhabited island, earning the ire of the Mexican government. Today, the islands are a Mexican wildlife refuge; visitors may anchor, scuba, and snorkel, but setting foot on the islands is prohibited without special permission from the government.
The Coronado Islands are located within the central portion of the Southern California Bight, on the continental margin within Mexico's exclusive economic zone. The islands are exposed continental blocks, produced by the shear zone of the Pacific and North American plates. To the west, underwater cliffs border a deep channel over 1,100 m (3,600 ft) in depth. The largest and closest island, South Coronado, is located approximately 13 km (8 mi) off the Mexican mainland and 12 km (7 mi) south of the maritime border with the United States. The islands are under the jurisdiction of Mexico and Tijuana Municipality in the state of Baja California.
The archipelago is composed of four main islands spread out over 8 km (5 mi).
The islands had been occupied by humans for over 1,000 years. As the islands lack any fresh water, permanent settlements would have not been feasible in the past. However, the islands were frequently visited by the local indigenous peoples (such as the Kumeyaay), who likely set up small and temporary encampments, possibly for retreats or other spiritual/sacred practices; ancient artifacts have been collected from both islands. North Island has artifacts that include teshoa flakes, and a midden on the saddle of the island. A small cave, dubbed Pirate's Cave, was reported to have had remains of ceramics. On South Island, numerous other middens exist. The artifacts may be from the La Jolla complex of peoples. Anthropologist J.P Harrington recorded the Luiseño word for the islands as "mexéelam". The Kumeyaay called the islands mat hasil ewik kakap.
Subsequent archaeological expeditions have corroborated reports of ceramic artifacts on the islands, with ceramic fragments found also on South Island. These ceramic fragments appear to have been fired in an open oven, and were likely used as cooking pots. Analysis of the artifacts suggests their production techniques are consistent with those of Yuman ceramic manufacture. Radiocarbon dating of abalone shells within the vicinity of the ceramic artifacts suggest that site was occupied intermittently from at least 1390 to 820 calibrated years BP.
In 1542, Portuguese explorer (later naturalized Castilian) Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo was the first European to notice the islands, describing them as Las Islas Desiertas (the desert islands) due to their barren lack of soil. In 1602 the priest for Sebastián Vizcaíno's expedition, Father Antonio de la Ascención, called them Los Cuatro Coronados (the four crowned ones) to honor the four brothers who died for their Christian faith. They are also known by a number of other names, with later fisherman, upon seeing floating coffins, ghostly faces and shrouded bodies amid the rocks dubbing them Old Stone Face, The Sarcophagi, Dead Man's Island, and Corpus Christi. They have also been referred to as the Sentinels of San Diego Bay.
Starting in the 1860s, advertisements for day trips to the islands began making appearances in local newspapers. At the same time, commercial fishing ventures also started, focusing mostly on rock cod.
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Coronado Islands
The Coronado Islands (Islas Coronado or Islas Coronados; English: Islands of the Coronation(s); Kumeyaay: Mat hasil ewik kakap) are a group of islands located 13 km (8 mi) off the northwest coast of the Mexican state of Baja California. Battered by the wind and waves, the rocky islands are mostly uninhabited except for a small military detachment and a lighthouse keeper. Despite their barren appearance, they serve as a refuge for seabirds and support a sizable number of plants, including 6 endemic taxa found only on the islands. The waters around the islands support a considerable amount of diverse marine life.
Used extensively and intermittently by the indigenous peoples for thousands of years, the first European explorers sighted them in 1542. Centuries later, they served as weekend getaway locations, secret gambling spots, and smuggling sites until the Mexican Navy clamped down on trespassing. The tied island city of Coronado, California, 27 km (17 mi) to the north, was named in honor of the islands after an 1886 naming competition. During World War II, the islands were utilized in joint training exercises between Mexico and the United States, but gained notoriety when future founder of Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard, shelled the inhabited island, earning the ire of the Mexican government. Today, the islands are a Mexican wildlife refuge; visitors may anchor, scuba, and snorkel, but setting foot on the islands is prohibited without special permission from the government.
The Coronado Islands are located within the central portion of the Southern California Bight, on the continental margin within Mexico's exclusive economic zone. The islands are exposed continental blocks, produced by the shear zone of the Pacific and North American plates. To the west, underwater cliffs border a deep channel over 1,100 m (3,600 ft) in depth. The largest and closest island, South Coronado, is located approximately 13 km (8 mi) off the Mexican mainland and 12 km (7 mi) south of the maritime border with the United States. The islands are under the jurisdiction of Mexico and Tijuana Municipality in the state of Baja California.
The archipelago is composed of four main islands spread out over 8 km (5 mi).
The islands had been occupied by humans for over 1,000 years. As the islands lack any fresh water, permanent settlements would have not been feasible in the past. However, the islands were frequently visited by the local indigenous peoples (such as the Kumeyaay), who likely set up small and temporary encampments, possibly for retreats or other spiritual/sacred practices; ancient artifacts have been collected from both islands. North Island has artifacts that include teshoa flakes, and a midden on the saddle of the island. A small cave, dubbed Pirate's Cave, was reported to have had remains of ceramics. On South Island, numerous other middens exist. The artifacts may be from the La Jolla complex of peoples. Anthropologist J.P Harrington recorded the Luiseño word for the islands as "mexéelam". The Kumeyaay called the islands mat hasil ewik kakap.
Subsequent archaeological expeditions have corroborated reports of ceramic artifacts on the islands, with ceramic fragments found also on South Island. These ceramic fragments appear to have been fired in an open oven, and were likely used as cooking pots. Analysis of the artifacts suggests their production techniques are consistent with those of Yuman ceramic manufacture. Radiocarbon dating of abalone shells within the vicinity of the ceramic artifacts suggest that site was occupied intermittently from at least 1390 to 820 calibrated years BP.
In 1542, Portuguese explorer (later naturalized Castilian) Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo was the first European to notice the islands, describing them as Las Islas Desiertas (the desert islands) due to their barren lack of soil. In 1602 the priest for Sebastián Vizcaíno's expedition, Father Antonio de la Ascención, called them Los Cuatro Coronados (the four crowned ones) to honor the four brothers who died for their Christian faith. They are also known by a number of other names, with later fisherman, upon seeing floating coffins, ghostly faces and shrouded bodies amid the rocks dubbing them Old Stone Face, The Sarcophagi, Dead Man's Island, and Corpus Christi. They have also been referred to as the Sentinels of San Diego Bay.
Starting in the 1860s, advertisements for day trips to the islands began making appearances in local newspapers. At the same time, commercial fishing ventures also started, focusing mostly on rock cod.