Masirah Island (), also referred to as Mazeira Island or Wilāyat Maṣīrah (), is an island off the east coast of mainland Oman in the Arabian Sea, and the largest island of the country. It is long north–south, between wide, with an area of about 649 km2, and a population estimated at 12,000 in 12 villages mainly in the north of the island (9,292 as of the census of 2003, of which were 2,311 foreigners). Administratively, it forms one of the five provinces (Wilayah, plural Wilayat) of the Ash Sharqiyah South Governorate. Previously it was a province of the Ash Sharqiyah Region. The principal village is Raʾs-Ḥilf () in the northern part of the island. It contains a Royal Air Force of Oman air base and a fish factory, as well as a few small towns. Previously, the BBC had a relay facility consisting of both HF and MF broadcasting transmitters stationed there. The main industries are fishing and traditional textile manufacturing. Formerly, traditional shipbuilding was important. Most of the island's interior is deserted, with access to the island only possible by a small ferry for cars or by Royal Air Force of Oman Airbus A320 flights. History Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age archaeological sites are dotted over the island, with one study finding shell middens dating to 6000BC, stone axes from 3000BC and fish line sinkers from 4000BC The Magan Civilization was present, with archaeological records from 2000-2700BC, Indus region pottery shards, and local copper mining in small quantities around 1500BC. The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, a periplus dated to between AD 40 and 70 describes Masirah island, then called Isle of Serapis: There was occupation by the Portuguese navy in the sixteenth century. The modern history of the island is little researched, but we know the fishermen were accomplished sailors, constructed their own boats, and trade with the mainland was well advanced. In the 1950s the sheikh lived on the East coast at Ra's al Ya. Landscape The rugged terrain of the island and surrounding rough coastline has led to the appearance of many wrecked dhows on the beaches of the island, most of them well preserved by the salt water and intense heat. On 21September 1835, the USS Peacock grounded on a coral reef. The ocean bottom environment surrounding Masirah is hostile as the majority of the area is covered in either sand or hard