{"id":9032,"date":"2019-09-13T16:31:59","date_gmt":"2019-09-13T16:31:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/377project.com\/?p=9032"},"modified":"2021-11-23T18:28:37","modified_gmt":"2021-11-23T18:28:37","slug":"282-377-villa-santantonio","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/377project.com\/en\/282-377-villa-santantonio\/","title":{"rendered":"282\/377: Villa Sant\u2019Antonio"},"content":{"rendered":"

INSPIRATION<\/h4>\n
\"Villa
Old portal in the historic centre<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Once left Mogorella<\/a>, after a short climb I descend into an area that I did not know and that will amaze me for the amount of impressive archaeological sites.<\/p>\n

Roberto and Ilaria welcome me with their children Davide and Marta. They will host me in their home, a beautiful and ancient renovated house, with a huge courtyard.<\/p>\n

Once the bikes and luggage have been arranged, we head to the Town Hall, where the Mayor Fabiano and the Councilor for culture Arianna receive me for an institutional greeting, and the guys from the civil service Alessandro, Iuri, Daniele are waiting for me to take us on a tour of the village.<\/p>\n

\"Villa
Sant’Antonio Abate church<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Until 1985 Villa Sant\u2019Antonio was called Sant\u2019Antonio Ruinas and was for a period a hamlet of Ruinas. Most of the houses are made of trachyte stone, many of them with ancient portals. We arrive at the parish church of Sant\u2019Antonio Abate<\/strong>, of ancient construction which was then renovated. It is said that inside there was a source of water, called Funtana Cuperta<\/strong>, perhaps a sacred well in Nuragic times.<\/p>\n

But it is only after lunch that I dig into a real tour in prehistory! Roberto takes me through a series of archaeological sites, and between one and the other I don’t have time to recover that the next one is even more impressive.<\/p>\n

\"Villa
Mysterious rock carvings<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Just outside the town, in a barren land, we\u00a0begin the leap in time with a mysterious shape carved into the rock.<\/p>\n

\"Villa
Monti Corru Tundu menhir<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After a walk under the afternoon sun we arrive at the menhir of Monti Corru Tundu<\/strong>, apparently the highest in Sardinia if not in Italy. I literally remain speechless. We linger in this private land, where sheep usually graze. I lean against a boulder (or betyl?) beside the menhir, and improvise a tune with the ukulele, with Roberto as the only spectator.<\/p>\n

\"Villa
Rock furrows<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We leave, walking in a road on the rock, completely dug by parallel furrows<\/strong> that remind me of those near the necropolis Su Crocifissu Mannu in Porto Torres<\/a>. Wagon prints? There is still no certainty about their origin.<\/p>\n

\"Villa
Is Forrus necropolis<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We arrive at the domus de janas necropolis of Is Forrus<\/strong>, divided into three zones in a large amphitheater-shaped terrain in the trachytic rock. We walk on the surface admiring the various tombs, and we go down to an area where the openings are lost in the middle of the vegetation. The view from this lower part is like that of an artist in the center of a stage with the tiers in front, ready to perform for an audience of ancient spirits.<\/p>\n

\"Villa
Prickly pears<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We drive along a country road bordered by imposing and colorful prickly pears, up to land owned by Roberto’s family where, surrounded by greenery, there are scattered menhirs, some standing, others lying down. It is no coincidence that this whole territory has taken the name of the Menhir Valley<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"Villa
Genna Salixi necropolis<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When we leave I think I have already seen enough, but Roberto has saved the surprise for the end of the lap. We arrive at the necropolis a domus de janas of Genna Salixi<\/strong>, a rounded rocky hill on the side of which the tombs open. I stand looking at it from a distance, as if it were a spaceship from which, at any moment, astronauts would come out of.<\/p>\n

And actually people come out of the openings, visitors. One of them greets me “hey Sebastiano!”. It is Raffaele, an expert genealogist and passionate about historical places and archeology, whom I met by chance in a countryside church in Bidon\u00ec<\/a> and who then hosted me in Palmas Arborea<\/a>.<\/p>\n

We conclude the evening at the home of Tziu Aldo, an elderly connoisseur of the territory, of every story, of every anecdote, but above all of every archaeological site. Tziu Aldo has his theories, like many in Sardinia, which do not always coincide with the official theories of archeology, and I listen as always with pleasure and interest, thinking about the moments of the day and coincidences, perhaps due to the alignment of the planets or thanks to the ancient spirits floating in this territory!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

SOUND FRAGMENTS<\/h4>\n

Live at the Monti Corru Tundu menhir<\/p>\n