Podesta (island)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Podesta is a phantom island reported by the Italian Captain Pinocchio of the vessel Barone Podestà in 1879 claiming it to be just over a kilometre in circumference located 1390 km due west of Valparaiso, Chile. It was originally located 900 miles west of Chile's coast. The island was charted falsely until 1935 when it was removed from charts. The island has not been found since.
Google Earth, a 3D representation of the Earth, marks the island at position although this is probably meant as a joke.
An island near Easter Island was sighted in 1912 but was likewise never seen again. Sarah Ann Island northwest of Easter Island was another island also removed from naval charts when a search in 1932 failed to find it.
Podestà is the Italian word for “mayor.” A podestà ruled an Italian city-state in the 13th and 14th centuries, and was often a foreigner.
