MOLARA
Molara is an island in north-eastern Sardinia and constitutes, together with the island of Tavolara, Molarotto, the peninsula of Punta Coda Cavallo and other minor rocks, the Tavolara Punta Coda Cavallo Marine Protected Area. Granite in nature, it has an area of 3,411 km² and reaches, with Punta la Guardia, 158 m a.s.l. The toponym, of medieval attestation, is probably due to the rounded and uniform shape of the island, similar to a millstone. History So far there are no documented prehistoric settlements on the island of Molara but at the dawn of Christianity it is said that Pope Pontian was exiled there, in 235, together with the priest Ippolito. In the north-western part of the island, near Cala Chiesa, there are the remains of a medieval single-ship church, in Romanesque style dedicated to San Ponziano. The church, whose original title is unknown, is very similar to other Gallura buildings of this type such as the church of San Leonardo di Balaiana, near Luogosanto, in internal Gallura. Around this church it was possible to identify the remains of a medieval town and further upstream of a castle, probably the ancient Gurguray even if there is no certain information on its actual demographic consistency. In the 15th century the existence on the island of a monastery of nuns is testified. Environment and tourism Although the island is very rocky and inaccessible, there are various perennial springs and perhaps for this abundance of water man has been able to live there for centuries. The vegetation cover of Molara is composed of a very rich Mediterranean scrub vegetation, mainly olive, mastic and cistus, degraded in some places due to a vast fire that burned the southern part of the island in the 70s of the twentieth century. There are wild livestock (cows and goats). To the east of Cala di Chiesa stands the dinosaur rock, a bizarre natural sculpture shaped by the winds and the sea. Numerous species of seabirds nest on the island such as the peregrine falcon and the rare Corsican gull. Even the shearwater is present with hundreds of pairs. The island is privately owned and cannot be visited.