Zannone

---

title: "Zannone" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["islands-of-lazio", "uninhabited-islands-of-italy"] description: "Island in the Tyrrhenian Sea" topic_path: "geography/italy" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zannone" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Island in the Tyrrhenian Sea ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox islands"]

Field	Value
name	Zannone
native_name
sobriquet
image_name	Zannone viewed from Circeo.jpg
image_caption	Zannone viewed from Circeo
coordinates
GridReference
waterbody	Tyrrhenian Sea
total_islands	1
area_km2	1
length_km
width_km
coastline_km
country	Italy
country_area_km2
country_1_area_km2
population	0
::

| name = Zannone | native_name = | native_name_link = | native_name_lang = | sobriquet = | image_name = Zannone viewed from Circeo.jpg | image_size = | image_caption = Zannone viewed from Circeo | image_alt = | map_image = | map_caption = | coordinates =
| etymology = | location = | type = | GridReference = | archipelago = | waterbody = Tyrrhenian Sea | total_islands = 1 | major_islands = | area_km2 = 1 | area_footnotes = | rank = | length_km = | length_footnotes = | width_km = | width_footnotes = | coastline_km = | coastline_footnotes = | elevation_m = | elevation_footnotes = | highest_mount = | country = Italy | country_admin_divisions_title = | country_admin_divisions = | country_admin_divisions_title_1 = | country_admin_divisions_1 = | country_admin_divisions_title_2 = | country_admin_divisions_2 = | country_capital_type = | country_capital = | country_largest_city_type = | country_largest_city = | country_capital_and_largest_city = | country_largest_city_population = | country_leader_title = | country_leader_name = | country_area_km2 = | country_1 = | country_1_admin_divisions_title = | country_1_admin_divisions = | country_1_admin_divisions_title_1 = | country_1_admin_divisions_1 = | country_1_capital_type = | country_1_capital = | country_1_largest_city_type = | country_1_largest_city = | country_1_capital_and_largest_city = | country_1_largest_city_population = | country_1_leader_title = | country_1_leader_name = | country_1_area_km2 = | demonym = | population = 0 | population_as_of = | population_footnotes = | population_rank = | population_rank_max = | density_km2 = | density_rank = | density_footnotes = | languages = | ethnic_groups = | timezone1 = | utc_offset1 = | timezone1_DST = | utc_offset1_DST = | website = | additional_info = Zannone (It. for "Big Fang") is an island in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the west coast of Italy. It is part of the Pontine Islands and belongs administratively to the comune of Ponza. The entire island is about 1 km2 in size and about 10 km from Ponza island.

The uninhabited island, home to the Punta Varo Lighthouse, is supervised by the State Forestry Corps, which maintains a station and a small educational exhibit on top of Monte Pellegrino, the highest point on the island.

Fauna and flora

Zannone is home to various endemic plant and animal species, preserved throughout the centuries thanks to man's scarce presence. It provides a safe stop for thousands of migratory birds and hosts a species of lizard that only exists there, the Podarcis siculus patrizii.

It is part of the Circeo National Park, because of its beauty and several rare biomes.

History

In ancient times, the island was frequented by the Greeks, as well as by the Romans who called it Sinonia.

On the island there are the ruins of a Cistercian convent dating back to the 13th century AD.

Zannone was visited in 1785 by Sir William Hamilton who described in detail his voyage there in a letter to Sir Joseph Banks.

Built on top of a hill is a colonial-style villa, now in ruins, the home of Marquis Casati Stampa and his wife Anna Fallarino, who were hosting orgies on the island, in the 1960s. At the time, many yachts and motorboats would land during weekends as dukes, barons, countesses, VIPs, and billionaires would drop by Zannone's famous couple.

The island was used historically as a private hunting reserve by members of the Italian aristocracy, who populated it with mouflon wild sheep, now a protected species.

Access

Zannone has no tourist facilities. Visitors have free access to the island and its beaches, though camping or overnight stays by the general public are prohibited. Biologists, scientists, and birdwatchers are usually granted permission to camp there overnight.

References

References

1. (22 November 2008). "Pontinian Islands - Ponza, Palmarola, Ventotene, Zannone".
2. "Island of Zannone - A perfectly preserved paradise".
3. "Zannone: An uninhabited nature reserve". [[Ministry of Culture (Italy).
4. (1801). "Ponza". [[Moore's Dublin Edition]].
5. See [[Casati Stampa murders]]
6. (30 July 2019). "Zannone: Italy's forbidden 'orgy island'".

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::