Aegadian Islands

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A map showing the Aegadian Islands.
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A map showing the Aegadian Islands.

The Aegadian Islands (Italian: Isole Egadi; Latin: Aegates Insulae), are a group of small mountainous islands in the Mediterranean Sea off the northwest coast of Sicily, Italy, near the city of Trapani, with a total area of 37,45 km².

Favignana (Aegusa), the largest, lies 10 miles south west of Trapani; Levanzo (Phorbantia) 8 miles west; while Marettimo, the ancient Iera Nesos, 15 miles west of Trapani, is now reckoned as a part of the group. There are also some minor islands between Favignana and Sicily.

The overall population in 1987 was estimated at about 5,000. The main occupation of the islanders is fishing and this is where the largest tuna fishery in Sicily can be found.

A view from Trapani to Favignana and Marettimo.
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A view from Trapani to Favignana and Marettimo.

There is evidence of Neolithic and even Paleolithic paintings in caves on Favigana and on Levanzo.

They are the scene of the defeat of the Carthaginian fleet by C. Lutatius Catulus in 241 BC, which ended the First Punic War.

They belonged to the Pallavicini family of Genoa until 1874, when they were bought by Florio family of Palermo.

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