The Austrian town of Jungholz presents an unusual geographic placement. Only a single point connects it to the rest of Austria. Otherwise Germany completely surrounds it.
Jungholz is an Austrian exclave for all practical purposes. In the strictest technical sense, a single dot attaches it to larger Austria. However, the only convenient path to the rest of the nation goes through Germany. I suppose hypothetically someone could climb to the top of the mountain Sorgschrofen and walk between the lands without physically touching German soil. However, I would also expect that few people would go through that trouble just to prove that simple point.
When four borders extend from a single point it forms a quadripoint. Some call it a border cross: the lines come together to form a cross “†”
Quadripoints are not entirely unknown within secondary divisions of nations. The famous four corners of the United States is an example. A similar phenomenon in exists in Canada with the establishment of Nunavut in 1999. However, it’s rare at the international level. In fact, there are no places where four nations form a quadripoint. Even the Jungholz example involving four borders and two nations is rare, just one of only three examples.
There’s an amazing set of photos and maps at a site called The Boundary Cross at Jungholz [unfortunately this link no longer works; enjoy this instead]. It also includes copies of the 19th Century treaties that came to mark this unusual border. If this topic fascinates you (as it does me), take a look!
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