The Quill (volcano)

The volcano seen from the northwest

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The Quill is a currently inactive stratovolcano in the southeast of the island of Sint Eustatius in the former Netherlands Antilles. With 601 meters above sea level it is the highest point on the island. The last eruption took place in 245-365 AD. The name comes from the Dutch word Quill kuil (meaning hollow, hole ). Today, the mountain is the tourist center of the island and belongs since 1998 to a National Park.

Formation

The result is the volcano about 22000-32000 years ago rhyolitic eruptions of about 200,000 years old volcanic center under a shallow-water limestone bank, about three kilometers from the then North West end of the island. The pyroclastic flows transported by, interspersed with chunks of limestone rock masses would attach themselves to the edges and joined with the neighboring island to today's terrain. The current crater has a depth of about 300 meters and a diameter of approximately 760 meters. The Quill is a currently dormant, but not extinct volcano. With the help of radiocarbon dating of the last eruption has been dated to the years 245-365. Temperature increases in groundwater suggest another activity.