Pantellería
Location
Completely isolated, Pantellería lies to the southwest 102km/63mi off the west coast of Sicily and only 84km/52mi from Tunisia. The island is of volcanic origin and is dominated by the Montagna Grande (836m/2,744ft), the inactive crater of which is surrounded by numerous sub-craters. Fumaroles and hot springs are further indications of its volcanic origin.
Completely isolated, Pantellería lies to the southwest 102km/63mi off the west coast of Sicily and only 84km/52mi from Tunisia. The island is of volcanic origin and is dominated by the Montagna Grande (836m/2,744ft), the inactive crater of which is surrounded by numerous sub-craters. Fumaroles and hot springs are further indications of its volcanic origin.
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Must-see attractions nearby:
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The Specchio di Venere (Mirror of Venus) is a salt-lake in the interior of the island, surrounded by hills and with a radioactive spring.
Vegetation
The mountain slopes are covered in macchia and cluster pine. grapes, figs, capers and fruit are cultivated on the fertile ground.
History
Man came to the island back in prehistoric times, and made use of its obsidian deposits. Historical evidence exists in the form of sesi, low burial towers of unhewn stone blocks near the Neolithic defensive settlement of Mursia. In the seventh century B.C. the island belonged to the Phoenicians, and graves from that period can be seen in the Valle di Monastero. The Romansconquered Pantellería in 217 B.C. and named it Cossyra. Later came the Vandals, Byzantines and, in the early eighth century, Arabs. Characteristic of the latter are the dammusi, cubiform houses with strong walls and domed roofs. In 1123 the Normans superseded the Saracens, later came the Turks and finally pirates. In 1860 Pantellería, like Sicily, became part of the Kingdom of Italy and was fortified in the Second World War. In 1943, after weeks of bombardment, American paratroopers took the island, the first Italian land to fall to the Allies.
Vegetation
The mountain slopes are covered in macchia and cluster pine. grapes, figs, capers and fruit are cultivated on the fertile ground.
History
Man came to the island back in prehistoric times, and made use of its obsidian deposits. Historical evidence exists in the form of sesi, low burial towers of unhewn stone blocks near the Neolithic defensive settlement of Mursia. In the seventh century B.C. the island belonged to the Phoenicians, and graves from that period can be seen in the Valle di Monastero. The Romansconquered Pantellería in 217 B.C. and named it Cossyra. Later came the Vandals, Byzantines and, in the early eighth century, Arabs. Characteristic of the latter are the dammusi, cubiform houses with strong walls and domed roofs. In 1123 the Normans superseded the Saracens, later came the Turks and finally pirates. In 1860 Pantellería, like Sicily, became part of the Kingdom of Italy and was fortified in the Second World War. In 1943, after weeks of bombardment, American paratroopers took the island, the first Italian land to fall to the Allies.
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