Robben Island is actually the summit of an ancient, now submerged mountain, linked by an undersea saddle to the Blouberg.
The Island is composed of Precambrian metamorphic rocks.
Thousands of years ago the sea channel between the island and the Cape mainland was not covered with water, with the result that people lived there long before it became a prison.
The Island is low-lying with the highest point being 24 metres, also known as Minto’s Hill.
Robben Island lighthouse, built on Minto Hill in 1864, is apparently the only South African lighthouse that utilises a flashing light instead of a revolving light.
The Island’s first prisoner was probably Harry die strandloper in the mid-17th century.
In the latter half of the 17th century a Dutch ship laden with gold disintegrated on the reefs a short distance offshore. While a few coins have washed ashore, the treasure (worth tens of millions of dollars today) remains in the ocean.
Robben Island has also been used as a training and defence station in World War II, and as a hospital for people with leprosy, and the mentally and chronically ill (1846-1931).
The spectacular veld flowers typical of the West Coast also occur on the Island during spring.
Robben Island is home to 132 bird species and 23 species of mammal.
Sources: Wikipedia | Robben Island Museum
Image: Wikipedia