Kesselaid (also Kessulaid, or diminutively Kessu. ; ) is a

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

islet An islet ( ) is generally a small island. Definitions vary, and are not precise, but some suggest that an islet is a very small, often unnamed, island with little or no vegetation to support human habitation. It may be made of rock, sand and/ ...

located between the mainland and the island of

Muhu Muhu (also called Muhumaa in Estonian) is an island in the West Estonian archipelago of the Baltic Sea. With an area of , it is the third largest island belonging to Estonia, after Saaremaa and Hiiumaa. Together with neighbouring smaller i ...

in the

Suur Strait Suur Strait () is a strait in Estonia, it is located between Muhu and the Estonian mainland. The strait (being itself part of Väinameri) connects Väinameri and Gulf of Riga. Several islets are located in the strait: e.g. Papirahu, Kesselaid, K ...

(''Big Strait'') which connects the

Väinameri The Väinameri (Estonian language, Estonian for ''Strait Sea'' or ''Sea of Straits''; ) or Väinameri Sea is a strait and sub-bay of the Baltic Sea, located between the West Estonian Archipelago and the Estonian mainland, within western Estonia. ...

strait and the

Gulf of Riga The Gulf of Riga, Bay of Riga, or Gulf of Livonia (, , ) is a bay of the Baltic Sea between Latvia and Estonia. The island of Saaremaa (Estonia) partially separates it from the rest of the Baltic Sea. The main connection between the gulf and t ...

. There is only one village on the island Kesse, which is administratively part of

Muhu Parish Muhu Parish () is a rural municipality of Estonia, in Saare County. It has a population of 1,876 (as of 1 January 2019) and an area of . Geography Muhu Parish is located on Muhu or Muhumaa and its neighbouring smaller islands of Kesselaid, V ...

Saare County Saare County ( or ''Saaremaa''; ; ; ; ) is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It consists of Saaremaa, the largest island of Estonia, and several smaller islands near it, most notably Muhu, Ruhnu, Abruka and Vilsandi. The county borders Lääne Count ...

. With the highest point 15.6 m above sea level, it is the highest islet of Estonia. It is also considered to be the oldest islet, as it arose from the sea around 3000 BC. Since 1938, the 7 to 8 feet high cliffs of Kesselaid have been designated a nature reserve.Uudo, Timm. ''Kesselaiu maastikukaitseala – pool sajandit unustuses''
/ref> Kesselaid was first described in print in 1644 in the Swedish maritime book ''Een siö-book, som innehåller om siöfarten i Östersiön'' by . Kesselaid had been inhabited by ethnic

Estonians Estonians or Estonian people () are a Finnic ethnic group native to the Baltic Sea region in Northern Europe, primarily their nation state of Estonia. Estonians primarily speak the Estonian language, a language closely related to other Finni ...

for centuries but heavy colonization by German settlers began in the 16th century. In 1807, Kesselaid was sold to the

Baltic German Baltic Germans ( or , later ) are Germans, ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since Flight and expulsion of Germans (1944–1950), their resettlement in 1945 after the end ...

noble Jacob Friedrich von Helwig. By the end of the 1930s, there were still 35 permanent residents on the island. Today, in summer Kesselaid is partly used as pasture and grazing land for cattle and goats. It has also become an excursion destination for nature tourists. On the island, 16 species of

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Orchids are cosmopolitan plants that are found in almost every habitat on Eart ...

s are counted. From the island of Muhu, wild boar and elk occasionally swim to Kesselaid. A lighthouse was first built on Kesselaid in 1885. The current, fully automated lighthouse dates to 1994.

Gallery

File:Kesselaiu kaart.png, Map of Kesselaid File:Kesselaid, remains of a manor.JPG, Remains of the cattle manor founded in 1807. File:Kessu liitsihi ülemine tulepaak.JPG, Upper lighthouse File:Kesselaiu rannik.JPG, Coastline

References

External links

Eesti Saarte Kogu: Images of the Kesselaid and the Kesselaid Lighthouse
{{Muhu Parish Estonian islands in the Baltic Muhu Parish Villages in Saare County

Gallery

See also

References

External links