Points of Interest
Natural and Rural Landscapes
The typical landscape of Pantelleria derives from the overlapping of anthropic and natural elements that create a worldwide unique landscape by mixing and harmonizing with each other.
Who comes on the island for the first time is intially fascinating by the coast and the sea but loves hereafter the inland paths that reveal a primordial and preserved Pantelleria. Thus, to really experience the island, it is necessary to discover its architecture, its nature, its flora and its fauna that make it a valid alternative to near Maghreb and Sicily.
The natural landscape: coastal and inland areas
Exploring Pantelleria from the coast or from the inland means discovering two different faces of the island, two different worlds linked together. While the coasts are shaped by the erosive action both of wind and sea, inland has been shaped by many volcanic eruptions in the last 50 thousand years.
Here below there is a brief description about what could be found both in coastal and inland areas. It is also worth mentioning the secondary volcanism of Pantelleria, mark of the underlying volcano that emerges from the depths of Canale di Sicilia.
The rural landscape
Typical elements of the rural landscape in Pantelleria are its dammúso, its Pantelleria garden, its traditional agricultural practice of cultivating the head-trained bush vines (UNESCO recognition), its churches and its archaeological heritage.
Geosites in Pantelleria
According to the definition of Wimbledon (1) Geosite is "Any location, area or territory where a geological or geomorphological interest for conservation can be defined." This term can then be used in multiple contexts: for limited surface outcrops, for mines, for isolated elements and for groups of sites with considerable range extension. Geosites thus become a useful tool for the development, planning and enhancement of a territory, in which the "good" can be observed and understood in its "dynamic" environment reality.
(1) Wimbledon W.A.P. (1999). Geosites - an International Union of Geological Sciences initiative to conserve our geological heritage. Polish Geological Institute Special Papers, n. 2, 5-8.
(2) Mahood G.A. and Hildreth W. (1986). Geology of the peralkaline volcano at Pantelleria, Strait of Sicily. Bulletin of Volcanology, n. 48: 143-172.
(3) Aiuppa A., D'Alessandro W., Gurrieri S., Madonia P., Parello F. (2007). Hydrologic and geochemical survey of the lake "Specchio di Venere" (Pantelleria island, Southern Italy). Environmental Geoloy, n. 53: 903-913.
(4) W. D'Alessandro, G. Dongarrà, S. Gurrieri, F. Parello, M. Valenza (1994). Geochemical characterization of naturally occurring fluids on the Island of Pantelleria (Italy). Mineralogica Petrografica Acta, n. 37: 91-102.
(5) Parello F., Allard P., D'Alessandro W., Federico C., Jean-Baptiste P., Catani O. (2000). Isotope geochemistry of Pantelleria volcanic fluids, Sicily Channel rift: a mantle volatile end-member for volcanism in southern Europe. Earth Planetary Science Letters, n. 180: 325-339.
(6) Bocchi G., Gabbianelli G., Lanzafame G., Lucchini F., Rabbi E., Rossi P.L. (1988). Relazione sui rilievi eseguiti sul "Lago di Venere", Pantelleria. Bull Italian Natl Group Volcanol n. 4: 63-73.
City quarters and Municipalities
The Pantelleria Churches
The small Pantelleria churches were built over the centuries by the local community, who shaped their appearance and structure according to the traditional architectural canons of dammúso.
Usually the central nave has a barrel roof with a diameter not exceeding 4-5 mt, while the side aisles and the apse have a vaulted roof. The side altars reflect the structure of the houses' alcoves. The churchyard is the traditional passiatúri, surrounded by the dukkéna. The external covering of the lateral arches forms a crenellated shaving, for the water to flow out but also to distinguish the church from the dammúso. The bell tower is never too high.
Here below there are the places of worship that fall within the Park area:
