Molène () is an island off the west coast of

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period o ...

and one of the Ponant Isles, making it the largest of an

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Archi ...

of twenty islands. In tiers of government it is in

Finistère Finistère (, ; br, Penn-ar-Bed ) is a department of France in the extreme west of Brittany. In 2019, it had a population of 915,090.

, a department of

in north-western

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

– specifically at the heart of the commune of Île-Molène, which takes in neighbouring islets.

Geography

The island is small, less than 1 by , and covers under of non-foreshore land. The community and port are on the east side, opposite a tiny

tidal island A tidal island is a piece of land that is connected to the mainland by a natural or man-made causeway that is exposed at low tide and submerged at high tide. Because of the mystique surrounding tidal islands, many of them have been sites of ...

, the Lédénes of Molène.

Population

Inhabitants of Île-Molène are called in

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

''Molénais''. Usual residents have fallen in recent decades, but Molène remains inhabited, with a permanent population of 169 (2013 census).

Amenities

The island's electricity is produced by a small

diesel generator A diesel generator (DG) (also known as a diesel Genset) is the combination of a diesel engine with an electric generator (often an alternator) to generate electrical energy. This is a specific case of engine generator. A diesel compression-i ...

. Potable water supplies are from

rainwater catchment Rainwater harvesting (RWH) is the collection and storage of rain, rather than allowing it to run off. Rainwater is collected from a roof-like surface and redirected to a tank, cistern, deep pit (well, shaft, or borehole), aquifer, or a reservoir w ...

, with each household additionally maintaining its own

cistern A cistern (Middle English ', from Latin ', from ', "box", from Greek ', "basket") is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by ...

. A local delicacy is Molène sausage, which has the distinction of being smoked with seaweed.

Wreckage history

Per a repetitive old Breton proverb, "" ("Who sees Molène sees his pain/penalty / who sees Ushant sees his blood / who sees Sein sees his end / who sees Groix sees his cross"). This proverb underlines local points being often deadly to navigate.

References

External links

Official website
* Islands of Brittany Communes of Finistère Populated coastal places in France {{Finistère-geo-stub