Cape Finisterre
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Cape Finisterre (Spanish: Cabo Finisterre; Galician: Cabo Fisterra) is a rock-bound peninsula in the uttermost west of Galicia, Spain.
Cape Finisterre is the westernmost point of Spain, though not of Continental Europe (that honour belongs to Cabo da Roca in Portugal), and its name, like that of Finistère in France, derives from Finisterrae in Latin which literally means "Land's End".
Cape Finisterre has a notable lighthouse on it and nearby is the seaside town of Fisterra.
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[edit] Geography
Cape Fisterra has some spectacular beaches like O Rostro, Arnela, Mar de Fora, Langosteira, Riveira, and Corbeiro. Many of the beaches are framed by steep cliffs leading down to the "Mare Tenebrosum" (or dark sea, the name of the Atlantic in the Middle Ages).
There are several rocks in this area associated with religious legends, such as the holy stones, the stained wine stones, the stone chair, and the tomb of Orcabella.
[edit] The pilgrimage to Finisterre
Cape Finisterre is the final destination for many pilgrims on the Way of St. James, the pilgrimage to the shrine of the apostle Saint James the Great in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. Cape Finisterre is about a 90-km walk from Santiago de Compostela. It is traditional for pilgrims to burn their clothes and/or boots at the end of their journey at Cape Finisterre.
The origin of the pilgrimage to Finisterre is not certain but it is believed to date from pre-Christian times and Finisterre's status as the edge of the world. The tradition continued in medieval times where hospitals were established to cater for pilgrims along the route from Santiago de Compostela to Finisterre.
Some pilgrims continue on to Muxia a day's walk away.
 Camiño de Santiago, Fisterra |
 Pilgrim's boot in Fisterra |
 Fisterra lighthouse |
[edit] Pre-Christian Beliefs
In the area there are many remnants of pre-Christian beliefs and sacred locations. On Cape Fisterra, some claim that there is the "Altar Soli", where the Celts engaged in sun worship and assorted rituals.
The Monte Facho, on Cape Fisterra, was the place were the Celtic Nerios from Duio carried out their offerings and rites in honor of the sun. San Guillerme also lived in a house located there. Near San Guillerme's house, sterile couples would copulate on one specific stone to try to conceive, following a Celtic rite of fertility.
[edit] Maritime history
Because it is a prominent landfall on the route from northern Europe to the Mediterranean, several Battles of Cape Finisterre have been fought nearby, and the coast has been the site of numerous shipwrecks and founderings, including that of the British ironclad HMS Captain, with nearly 500 lives, in 1870.
Additionally, laws governing the colonies of the British Empire (including the 1766 amendment to the Sugar Act of 1764) used Cape Finisterre as indicative of the latitude past which certain goods could not be shipped north directly between British colonies. For instance, it was forbidden to ship sugar cane directly from Jamaica to Nova Scotia, as such a transaction crossed through this latitude. Instead, the laws required that the sugar cane be shipped first from Jamaica to England, where it would be re-exported to Nova Scotia.
