Island of Levanzo
Levanzo is the smallest of the three main Aegadian Islands in the Mediterranean Sea, lying west of Sicily in the Province of Trapani. Forming part of the comune of Favignana, it covers barely five square kilometres and is home to fewer than two hundred permanent residents, yet it shelters one of Italy’s most remarkable prehistoric sites: the Grotta del Genovese, whose cave walls bear Palaeolithic engravings and Neolithic paintings spanning some ten thousand years of human presence in the central Mediterranean.
At a glance
- Type
- Mediterranean island; prehistoric rock art site
- Period
- Inhabited from the Upper Palaeolithic; Grotta del Genovese art c. 10,000–6,000 BC
- Style
- Natural landscape; prehistoric cave art
- Location
- Aegadian Islands, Province of Trapani, Sicily, Italy
- Coordinates
- 37.9872° N, 12.3395° E
Overview
Levanzo is the smallest of the three main Aegadian Islands in the Mediterranean Sea west of Sicily, Italy, and forms part of the municipality of Favignana in the Province of Trapani. Despite its tiny area, the island occupies a prominent place in the prehistory of the Mediterranean thanks to the Grotta del Genovese, which contains engravings and paintings of animals and human figures created between the end of the last Ice Age and the Neolithic period. Together with Marettimo and Favignana, Levanzo is protected within a regional nature reserve.
History
During the last Ice Age, when sea levels were considerably lower, Levanzo formed part of a much larger landmass connected to Sicily, and the Grotta del Genovese cave was inhabited by hunter-gatherer communities who left behind incised images of deer, horses, bovids and tuna — animals that reflect both the terrestrial and marine resources of their world. As sea levels rose after 10,000 BC, the island became isolated, and later Neolithic communities added painted figures, including stylised human forms. The cave was rediscovered by the Italian palaeontologist Fosco Maraini in 1949 and subsequently studied by the prehistorian Paolo Graziosi. In antiquity the island was known as Phorbantia by the Greeks. Like the rest of the Aegadian archipelago, it passed through Byzantine, Arab, Norman and Aragonese control before becoming part of unified Italy in 1860.
What you see
Levanzo village is a cluster of whitewashed houses around a small harbour, tranquil and essentially car-free. The island’s interior is covered in low Mediterranean maquis, criss-crossed by footpaths that lead to clifftop viewpoints over the sea. The Grotta del Genovese, accessible only on foot or by boat and by prior arrangement with the custodian family, is the island’s defining attraction: a long narrow cave whose walls display over thirty engraved figures of Palaeolithic date alongside painted Neolithic anthropomorphic and animal images, remarkably well preserved in the constant microclimate of the cave interior.
Cultural significance
The Grotta del Genovese is one of the most important Palaeolithic decorated caves in the central and southern Mediterranean, comparable in scientific value to sites in France and Spain and unique in its Italian context for the completeness of its stratigraphic record spanning from Palaeolithic to Neolithic. The island itself, together with the other Aegadian Islands, is inscribed within Italy’s system of protected marine and terrestrial nature reserves, preserving exceptional biodiversity in waters where underwater archaeologists continue to recover evidence of the ancient Battle of the Aegates (241 BC).
Practical information
- How to arrive
- Ferry and hydrofoil from Trapani (approx. 25–40 minutes); also seasonal services from Favignana
- Grotta del Genovese
- Visits by prior arrangement only; contact the custodian family in Levanzo village
- Best time to visit
- May–June and September–October for good weather and calm seas
- Notes
- Very limited tourist infrastructure; bring supplies; no motorised traffic on the island
Getting there
Liberty Lines operates daily hydrofoil services from Trapani to Levanzo, with a crossing time of approximately twenty-five minutes. Trapani is accessible by rail from Palermo (about two hours) and is served by Vincenzo Florio Airport (Trapani Birgi) with seasonal flights from Italian and European cities. The A29 motorway connects Trapani to Palermo.