The
Isthmus of Panama, also historically known as the
Isthmus of Darien, is the narrow strip of land that lies between the
Caribbean Sea and the
Pacific Ocean, linking
Central and
South America. It was formed some 3 million years ago during the
Pliocene epoch. It contains the nation of
Panama and the
Panama Canal. Like many
isthmuses, it is a location of great strategic value.
Silver and gold from the viceroyalty of Peru were transported overland across the isthmus to Porto Bello where Spanish treasure fleets shipped them to Seville (Cádiz from 1707).
Scotland tried to establish a settlement in 1698 through the Darien scheme.
In 1902–04 the United States forced Colombia to grant independence to the department of the Isthmus, bought the remaining assets of the PCC and finished the canal in 1914.
