Pico Turquino sometimes erroneously spelled as Pico Torquino, is the highest point in Cuba. It is located in the southeast part of the island, in the Sierra Maestra mountain range in the municipality of Guamá, Santiago de Cuba Province.
The name is believed to be a corruption of the phrase for “turquoise peak” (Spanish: turquesa), so-named for its apparent blue hues seen by the heights in certain views It was first mentioned (under the name “Tarquino”) on a map drawn by Geert de Kremer in the late 16th century. The first detailed written account of ascent of the peak by a European was in 1860 by F.W. Ramsden.
A bust of José Martí, sculpted by Jilma Madera, was placed on the peak to celebrate his centenary.
Fidel Castro and his soldiers summitted the peak in 1957 during their insurgency. According to Che Guevara, Castro’s second-in-command, the mountain had an “almost mystical significance” to the revolutionaries, chiefly due to it being the highest point in Cuba.
Turquino National Park is established on a 229.38 km2 (88.56 sq mi) area around the peak.
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