Nuraghi are truncated-cone towers of huge stone blocks, built between about 1700 and 700 BC. Some stand alone, others form complex fortresses with several towers, walls and villages around them. Their purpose is still debated: homes of chiefs, watchtowers, granaries, symbols of a community.
The same civilization built sacred wells for water worship, giants' tombs for collective burials and bronze figurines of warriors, priests and boats, now kept in the museums of Cagliari and Sassari.
Sites to visit
- Su Nuraxi, Barumini
The most famous nuragic village, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, visited with guides. - Santu Antine, Torralba
The 'royal palace' of the nuraghi, with corridors and stairs inside the walls. - Nuraghe Losa, Abbasanta
A three-lobed nuraghe among the best preserved. - Santa Cristina sacred well, Paulilatino
A water temple with a perfect stairway; at the equinoxes the light reaches the bottom. - Tiscali, Supramonte
A village hidden inside a collapsed cave, reached on foot. - Giants of Mont'e Prama, Cabras
Stone statues over two metres tall, shown in Cabras and Cagliari.
Guided tours of nuragic sites
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