Smeerenburg
Smeerenburg | |
|---|---|
Dutch-Danish whaling station (1619–1657) Ghost town | |
| Coordinates: 79°43′54″N 10°59′42″E / 79.73167°N 10.99500°E | |
| Country | Norway |
| Syssel | Svalbard |
| Island | Spitsbergen |
| Settled | 1619 |
| Closure | 1657 |
| Population | |
• Total | 0 |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | +2 |
Smeerenburg was a whaling settlement on Amsterdam Island in northwest Svalbard. It was founded by the Danish and Dutch in 1619 as one of Europe's northernmost outposts. With the local bowhead whale population soon decimated and whaling developed into a pelagic industry, Smeerenburg was abandoned around 1660.