Tenerife today, I made this picture from the "El Teide" volcano, rising 3718 meter above sea-level and 7000 meter from the seabed. With that number she is the no 3 in the ranks of highest volcano's of the world. (1 & 2 are in Hawaii). 

Tenerife today, I made this picture from the "El Teide" volcano, rising 3718 meter above sea-level and 7000 meter from the seabed. With that number she is the no 3 in the ranks of highest volcano's of the world. (1 & 2 are in Hawaii). From the sixteen hundreds until 1826 she was for the Dutch cartographers the prime meridian of the world (0 longitude).

After 1826 nearly everybody started to recognize Greenwich as the Prime Meridian.

El Teide got this important role in the early years of navigation because of her good visibility for sailors.
After passing this last beacon on their way South they had to work out there longitude by dead reckoning.
In the end of the 18th century the Harrison H4 clock was the solution to calculate the ships longitude with the help of the correct time and a sextant.

I am sure that Schouten & Lemaire were using El Teide in 1615 still as the last proper beacon for their Longitude on their way to discover Cape Horn.
With this feeling I looked up at her today. Canary pine trees and blue skies accompanying her beautiful silhouette.