Scholars believe that the occupation of this coast ( all the West coast of Portugal and Galicia in Spain ) dates back to Carthaginian navigators, before the Second Punic War (218-202 BC).
At the time of the Roman invasion of the Iberian Peninsula, the island was home to a small fishing centre, as certified by the recently discovered remains of salting tanks and now it is classed as a Sea Sanctuary so it is strictly forbiden to land there and even, to swim too close to it.