Kusagaki Islands

Also known as Kusagaki Island, it is located on the southwestern tip of the Satsuma Peninsula in Kagoshima Prefecture, about 90 km southwest of Cape Noma, in the East China Sea at 30 degrees 50 minutes north latitude and 129 degrees 26 minutes east longitude. It belongs to Minamisatsuma City. It consists of three islands - Kaminoshima, Nakanoshima, and Shimonoshima - as well as a group of small islets and reefs. The main island, Kaminoshima, is 131 meters high at its highest point, has a circumference of 4 km, and an area of ​​0.05 square kilometers. It is made of Tertiary period andesite and is surrounded by cliffs. Fragments of pottery and earrings from the Jomon to Kofun periods have been discovered on the island.

[Kimihiko Tsukada]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

草垣島ともよぶ。鹿児島県薩摩(さつま)半島の南西端、野間(のま)岬の南西洋上約90キロメートル、北緯30度50分、東経129度26分の東シナ海に位置する。南さつま市に属す。上ノ島、中ノ島、下ノ島の3島のほか、小島岩礁群よりなる。主島の上ノ島は最高点131メートル、周囲4キロメートルで面積0.05平方キロメートル。第三紀の安山岩からなり断崖(だんがい)に囲まれる。島内で、縄文～古墳時代の土器片や耳飾りなどが発見されている。

［塚田公彦］

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