Mölle is a

locality Locality may refer to: * Locality (association), an association of community regeneration organizations in England * Locality (linguistics) * Locality (settlement) * Suburbs and localities (Australia), in which a locality is a geographic subdivis ...

situated in

Höganäs Municipality Höganäs Municipality (''Höganäs kommun'') is one of 290 municipalities of Sweden, in Skåne County in the southern part of the country. Its seat is located in the city of Höganäs. The rural municipality Höganäs, in which the first ''mun ...

Skåne County Skåne County ( sv, Skåne län, link=no ), sometimes referred to as Scania County in English, is the most southern county, or , of Sweden, basically corresponding to the traditional province Scania. It borders the counties of Halland, Kronobe ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

with 715 inhabitants in 2010. It is best known for its scenic

harbour A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is a ...

and its location adjacent to the

Kullaberg Nature Reserve Kullaberg () is a peninsula and nature reserve of land protruding into the Kattegat in Höganäs Municipality near the town of Mölle in southwest Sweden. The site in the province of Skåne is an area of considerable biodiversity supporting a num ...

. Its harbour, situated on the

Kattegat The Kattegat (; sv, Kattegatt ) is a sea area bounded by the Jutlandic peninsula in the west, the Danish Straits islands of Denmark and the Baltic Sea to the south and the provinces of Bohuslän, Västergötland, Halland and Skåne in Sweden ...

Strait, provides services for marine fishing, watersports outings and tour excursions along the coast, especially the

rocky shore A rocky shore is an intertidal area of seacoasts where solid rock predominates. Rocky shores are biologically rich environments, and are a useful "natural laboratory" for studying intertidal ecology and other biological processes. Due to their ...

of Kullaberg to the north. Fodor characterizes Mölle as "a small town set in spectacular isolation on the dramatic headland of the Kulla Peninsula". As a historic seaside

resort A resort (North American English) is a self-contained commercial establishment that tries to provide most of a vacationer's wants, such as food, drink, swimming, lodging, sports, entertainment, and shopping, on the premises. The term ''resort ...

, Mölle has hosted numerous technical and professional

conference A conference is a meeting of two or more experts to discuss and exchange opinions or new information about a particular topic. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always decisions, are the main p ...

s such as: the Swedish Network of European Economists, Joint Swedish-Russian International Workshop on Information Theory; and the Royal Society (

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

) of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

Logistics

Mölle can be accessed from the north south coastal road 111, which effectively accesses Mölle from the south and terminates at Kullaberg, just north of Mölle. The nearest

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...

is approximately 19 kilometers distant at

Ängelholm Ängelholm is a locality and the seat of Ängelholm Municipality in Skåne, Sweden with 39,612 inhabitants in 2010. History The old settlement ''Rynestad'' was mentioned around the year 1600. The city was founded in 1516 as Engelholm by King Chri ...

. Mölle is situated 35 kilometers northwest of

Helsingborg Helsingborg (, , , ) is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Scania (Skåne), Sweden. It is the second-largest city in Scania (after Malmö) and ninth-largest in Sweden, with a population of 113,816 (2020). Helsingborg is the cent ...

. The nearest

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

s are Björkeröd and Kockenhus, each about two kilometers distant. The town itself is nestled on the steeply sloping hillside above the Kattegat Strait. Mölle’s official altitude is given as 16 meters, although the

and coastal area are of course essentially at sea level. The

time zone A time zone is an area which observes a uniform standard time for legal, Commerce, commercial and social purposes. Time zones tend to follow the boundaries between Country, countries and their Administrative division, subdivisions instead of ...

there is UTC+1.

Environmental factors

Mölle has a

littoral zone The littoral zone or nearshore is the part of a sea, lake, or river that is close to the shore. In coastal ecology, the littoral zone includes the intertidal zone extending from the high water mark (which is rarely inundated), to coastal areas ...

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

consisting of

shingle beach A shingle beach (also referred to as rocky beach or pebble beach) is a beach which is armoured with pebbles or small- to medium-sized cobbles (as opposed to fine sand). Typically, the stone composition may grade from characteristic sizes ranging ...

and

line; this

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...

has a panoply of coastal

wildflower A wildflower (or wild flower) is a flower that grows in the wild, meaning it was not intentionally seeded or planted. The term implies that the plant probably is neither a hybrid nor a selected cultivar that is in any way different from the w ...

lichen A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.moss Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and hor ...

es, as well as abundant

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

life. Surrounding the higher elevations of hillside Mölle are broadleaf

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s of mixed oak and

beech tree Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''E ...

s, which ecosystem graduates into the Kullaberg upper reaches. This habitat fosters a diverse upland

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. E ...

and

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. Zoo ...

, notably since the Kullaberg is listed as an

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

. Air quality conditions at Mölle are excellent with little industry in the immediate vicinity and prevailing offshore breezes characterizing the air flow. Sound levels are quite low, ranging from 43 to 56 dBA,C.Michael Hogan, ''Kullaberg Nature Reserve, Skane, Sweden'', Lumina Technologies Press, Aberdeen (2004)
since there is only a modest use of motor vehicles within the town. Pedestrians comprise much of the trip taking within Mölle, especially due to the efficient

footpath A footpath (also pedestrian way, walking trail, nature trail) is a type of thoroughfare that is intended for use only by pedestrians and not other forms of traffic such as motorized vehicles, bicycles and horses. They can be found in a wide ...

s that scale the hill, with only more indirect routes available for

motor vehicle A motor vehicle, also known as motorized vehicle or automotive vehicle, is a self-propelled land vehicle, commonly wheeled, that does not operate on Track (rail transport), rails (such as trains or trams) and is used for the transportation of pe ...

The harbour

The harbour has been constructed from a rock

jetty A jetty is a structure that projects from land out into water. A jetty may serve as a breakwater, as a walkway, or both; or, in pairs, as a means of constricting a channel. The term derives from the French word ', "thrown", signifying somet ...

that further encloses a natural bay and provides slips for approximately 130 small and medium-sized

boat A boat is a watercraft of a large range of types and sizes, but generally smaller than a ship, which is distinguished by its larger size, shape, cargo or passenger capacity, or its ability to carry boats. Small boats are typically found on inl ...

s. Mölle's harbour is the economic and social center of the town, especially in summertime, when townspeople and visitors gravitate to the waterfront for walking, dining, shopping, socializing and engaging boats for day trips. In the warmest months swimmers can occasionally be seen in the cool waters of the harbour. The harbour is also noteworthy because it commands a central position on the Kattegat Strait, one of the busiest parts of the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

region. This strategic importance is magnified by the proximity of Mölle to the historic

Kullen Lighthouse The Kullen Lighthouse ( sv, Kullens fyr) is an operational lighthouse in Scania, located by the mouth of Öresund, at the point of Kullaberg peninsula, in Höganäs, on the south-west coast of Sweden. Kullen is one of the most prominent landmark ...

on the Kullaberg Peninsula, which is the brightest

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mar ...

in Sweden.

History

Mölle was a lively 19th century fishing

, some of whose stately buildings survive to the present. It was earlier and still is today an enclave of relatively affluent residents, who initially made their fortunes from fishing. There are extant two sizeable 19th century

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

s, which are perched high above the harbour. Other historic buildings surviving are the 1910 Villa Italienborg, built by a scrap dealer whose

architectural Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings o ...

ideas derived from a visit to the

Italian Riviera The Italian Riviera or Ligurian Riviera ( it, Riviera ligure; lij, Rivêa lìgure) is the narrow coastal strip in Italy which lies between the Ligurian Sea and the mountain chain formed by the Maritime Alps and the Apennines. Longitudinall ...

. Villa Africa is a two-story historical residence erected by a Mölle sea captain to woo his

bride A bride is a woman who is about to be married or who is newlywed. When marrying, the bride's future spouse, (if male) is usually referred to as the ''bridegroom'' or just ''groom''. In Western culture, a bride may be attended by a maid, brides ...

to move from

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

In the latter part of the 19th century Mölle was renowned as a center for erotic entertainment, especially mixed sex

bathing Bathing is the act of washing the body, usually with water, or the immersion of the body in water. It may be practiced for personal hygiene, religious ritual or therapeutic purposes. By analogy, especially as a recreational activity, the term is ...

(considered marginally scandalous in that era); thus it attracted visitors from throughout Sweden as well as various parts of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. There was even a weekly train from

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

to Mölle up until the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Books

* Magnusson, Erik. "Det vackra huset i Möllebergsbacken, om 150 år av turism vid Kullabergs fot". . Monitorförlaget 2009. * Pyk, Hans-Otto. "Mölle genom fem sekler 1491-1991". Mölle byförening 1991. * Knafve, Bert och Kirsten. "Bilder från Kullabygden". Liber 1981. * Olsheden, Jan och Olsson, Stellan. "Vad gjorde farfar i Mölle?" ISBN B0014SP05M. Mölle 1967. * Mölleryd, Anders W. "Mölle-Kullen genom tiderna". Del I-VII. Eremit-press 1959-81.

References

External links

Pictures of Molle (Mölle)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Molle Populated places in Höganäs Municipality Populated places in Skåne County Coastal cities and towns in Sweden