  Large lithium molybdate (Li$_2$MoO$_4$) crystal boules were produced by using
the low thermal gradient Czochralski growth technique from deeply purified
molybdenum. A small sample from one of the boules was preliminary characterized
in terms of X-ray-induced and thermally-excited luminescence. A large
cylindrical crystalline element (with a size of $\oslash 40\times40$ mm) was
used to fabricate a scintillating bolometer, which was operated aboveground at
$\sim 15$ mK by using a pulse-tube cryostat housing a high-power dilution
refrigerator. The excellent detector performance in terms of energy resolution
and $\alpha$ background suppression along with preliminary positive indications
on the radiopurity of this material show the potentiality of Li$_2$MoO$_4$
scintillating bolometers for low-counting experiment to search for neutrinoless
double beta decay of $^{100}$Mo.
