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Areas Social action Culture and Historical Heritage On 1 July, La Mola lighthouse reboots as full-service museum

On 1 July, La Mola lighthouse reboots as full-service museum

visita-far-de-la-mola1Earlier today the president and culture chief of the Consell de Formentera, Alejandra Ferrer and Susana Labrador, respectively, visited the cultural and educational spaces of the newly retooled lighthouse in La Mola. President Ferrer announced the building's public opening was scheduled for 5.00pm to 9.00pm on Monday 1 July, coinciding with a world holiday promoting assistance for maritime navigation. Entry will be free on Monday and all through the week—a way to celebrate, according to Ferrer, “the rebranding as a cultural space of this important symbol of our maritime heritage”.

La Mola lighthouse
A monument to civil engineering, La Mola's lighthouse was designed by Emili Pou Bonet and completed in 1861. Today the building houses a space which is devoted to culture and to showcasing the island's maritime heritage. It is divided into two clearly distinct exhibition spaces. The permanent exhibition explores its main focus —the sea— from multiple angles: the marine environment, natural resources management, navigation and light signals. A second space is dedicated to temporary art exhibits.

Consellera Labrador hailed the launch of a space “where islanders and visitors alike can appreciate the depths of the maritime heritage of an island like Formentera, and get a sense of the history of its lighthouses”. Now through October, the building will open 11.00am to 2.00pm Tuesdays to Sundays (plus Wednesday and Sunday evenings from 5.00pm to 9.00pm), and will be closed on Mondays but for the 1 July kickoff. General admission is €4.50, though Formentera residents, youth under 18 and unemployed individuals enter free (pensioners and students get in at a reduced rate of €2.50).

Museum collection
Visitors to the site come upon the first displays outside; information covers about the island, salt, Formentera's coastline and local history. At the entry there are panels giving insight into the undersea-scape, nature and posidonia seagrass. Farther along in the exhibit, visitors learn about the history of lighthouses and La Mola lighthouse's Jules Verne connection. The tour continues with explanatory texts about Formentera's relationship with the sea, sundry watercraft, naval constructions, a model llaüt rowboat and fishing tackle. Video displays retrace the stories of figures involved in navigating. There's also a place at the museum for gastronomy. Tours conclude with a display that urges reflection about our lighthouse and maritime heritage and the importance of conservation.

28 June 2019
Department of Communications
Consell de Formentera

Xarxa de Biblioteques

Institut d'Estudis Baleàrics

Enciclopèdia d'Eivissa i Formentera