Barumini

Barumini, Sardinia, Italy

Previously included in the Province of Cagliari until May 2006, the small town is situated amid the hills of Marmilla, a short distance from the south east mountains of Giara di Gesturi, and is famous for su Nuraxi, a Unesco World Heritage Site, one of the main monuments of the megalithic civilisation of Sardinia.

spazio
spazio

Info
Altitude: 200 m a.s.l -- Population: about 1400 inhabitants -- Zip/postal code: 09021 -- Phone Area Code: 070 -- Patron Saint: St Sebastian

History

The history of the place is lost in the mist of time. The mighty Nuraghe shows that the area was an important fortress of the early Sardinian inhabitants, and was finally conquered by the Carthaginians in the 6th century BC. Remains of a Roman villa were found in the residential area of the nuraghe but very little is known of that time. In the Middle Ages, starting from the 11th century Barumini belonged to the Giudicato of Arborea, one of the seven medieval jurisdictions of Sardinia. In 1410 the territory came under the Marquisate of Oristano and in 1479 Sardinia became a Spanish possession. Finally in the early 18th century it came under the Savoy kings.

What to see

1 km to the west the Nuraghe su Nuraxi. A fortress made of huge volcanic stones assembled without mortar, with a central, 2-floor tower, going back to 1300 BC, a bastion with 4 more towers, and a huge 7-sided defence wall with more towers, built in later centuries, with also foundations of about 50 nuragic huts, inhabited until Roman times.
10 km to the north west the Giara di Gesturi, a volcanic plateau of basalt rocks, in very ancient times an acropolis of the early Sardinian populations, with defence fortresses at each entry. The plateau has steep, abrupt walls, and has a vegetation of cork oak trees, where wild horses range freely.