Su Nuraxi di Barumini

Su Nuraxi

Italy · Sardinia, Barumini

FortressUnknownUNESCO · 1997
Approximate period1,600 BCE — 700 CEMiddle Bronze Age–Early Middle Ages; approximate and intermittent use See on the map ↓

In brief

Su Nuraxi is an excavated Nuragic complex consisting of a towered defensive structure and its surrounding village. Work conducted by Giovanni Lilliu in the 1950s brought the buried structures to light.

What was found?

  • 1Central nuraghe tower

    It is the large stone tower forming the core of the complex. The basalt masonry and the corbelling technique used to cover the interior demonstrate the building knowledge of Nuraghe society.

  • 2Flanking towers and defensive walls

    These consist of towers, courtyards, and substantial walls developed around the central tower. They show that the settlement's defensive arrangement was expanded over time.

  • 3Village of huts

    These are the residential remains spreading around the tower complex. They reveal that Su Nuraxi was a residential settlement as well as a group of defensive structures.

  • 4Huts for communal and ritual use

    According to researchers, some buildings in the village were used for community activities and rituals. These spaces indicate that shared activities beyond domestic life also took place in the settlement.

What does it point to?

Su Nuraxi shows that defensive architecture, residences, and communal spaces were combined within the same settlement. According to researchers, this arrangement reflects the complexity of the social and economic organization of Nuraghe communities.

What did it teach us?

  1. It showed that large stone towers and interiors with corbelled roofs could be built in Bronze Age Sardinia.
  2. It documented the presence of a village where daily life continued around the tower complex.
  3. According to researchers, the communal and ritual functions of some huts show that buildings in the settlement were used for different purposes.

Images

Nuraghe Su Nuraxi - Barumini - Sardinia - Italy - 23
Norbert Nagel · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Nuraghe Su Nuraxi - Barumini - Sardinia - Italy - 07
Norbert Nagel · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Record

Culture
Nuragic culture; later Roman and Early Medieval use
Team / historical
Giovanni Lilliu; major excavations in the 1950s
Coordinates
39.7058°, 8.9914°

Sources

  1. whc.unesco.org
  2. fondazionebarumini.it

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