Mosteiros Islets


The Mosteiros Islets are four uninhabited rocky islets located about from the settlement of Mosteiros, off the extreme northwestern coast of the island of São Miguel in the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores.

History and etymology

The Mosteiros Islets gave the neighboring municipality of Mosteiros its name. According to Azorean chronicler Gaspar Frutuoso, the earliest settlers to the area thought the largest of the islets looked like a church or monastery, and therefore named the islets and their settlement Mosteiros. Frutuoso noted:

Geography

The Mosteiros Islets are the exposed remains of a submarine volcanic cone heavily eroded by the sea over time. The islets are composed of compacted palagonite tuff rock.
The maximum altitude of the islets is above sea level. Their picturesque quality makes them a sought-out tourist destination in the Ponta Delgada region.