Middle Age

Expected time (h:m): 

1:10

Walk for: 

5 km

Difficulty: 

  • medium

First it was the Vandals, then the Byzantines and the Muslims. Even after the period of Roman domination, Cagliari continued to be tempting to many. Various events, rebellions and thwarted conquests have lend support to the prolific Giudical period, from then to the Pisan domination, which ousted the local population but transformed the city into the nerve centre of Sardinia.

The intolerance of Cagliari’s population was revealed in the late medieval era during the revolt against the Aragoneses. Demonstrations of force that have remained engraved in the fortifications, which still impress the visitors and the citizens themselves.

St. Augustine Crypt

The definition says it, it is hidden, but the crypt of St. Augustine is occulted for other reasons. It can be accessed, on scheduled days, only from the entrance hall of the Accardo building, in the Largo Carlo Felice. Only recently, with the displacement of a business that occluded the entrance, it is once again fully visible the lunette that reveals how, from 504 to 722, the site enshrined the remains of St. Augustine of Hippo, arriving at Cagliari in sequel to St. Fulgentius of Ruspe. In the second half of the XVI century, churches and convents that stood outside the city walls were demolished and then rebuilt in front of the current venue.

Elephant Tower

You cannot visit Cagliari, and omit to visit it. The Tower of the Elephant is a symbol of the city. Built in limestone blocks in 1307, designed by the architect Giovanni Capula, it protected the southwest side of the Castello. Developed on four levels, for a total height of 35 meters, it was also used as a powder keg, armoury and prison. It still represents one of the most picturesque sites of the city; also for the presence on the façade of a marble elephant -perhaps a symbol of maritime power of Pisa. - It has become the mascot of our app Hi Cagliari.

 

Phone number: 070.409.2306 / 070.667.0168

Fax number: 070.685.1832

E-mail: orientare@orientare.it

Website: www.beniculturalicagliari.it

This element belongs to the categories: Monuments, Historical Defensive Presidios, Towers

Opening hours:

Winter: Mon-Sun 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Summer (from Monday, May 11th, 2015): Mon-Sun 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Admission fees:

Adult: € 3,00;

Youth and groups over 15 people: € 2.00

School groups: € 1.00

Bastion of Santa Croce

At night, it is one of the stopovers of Cagliari nightlife. At day, the terrace of the Bastion of Santa Croce, located directly on what was at a time the main axis of the Jewish quarter, shows its ancient beauty, the comings and goings in Largo Carlo Felice and the sloping roofs of Stampace. To savour along with a famous local cocktail or with typical dishes revisited by skilled chefs. Seated at the table, or in an armchair, with the sky as ceiling.

Aragonese Chapel Cathedral

It seems to defy the laws of gravity, aspires to heaven and brings up with it the faithful’s eyes. Located in the right transept, the Aragonese Chapel distinguished itself from the Baroque triumph of St. Mary Cathedral. It remains true to the almost ascetic rigor of the Catalan Gothic style, which culminates in the groin vault and the decorative details. It is not only its particular architecture to make it as a unicum the main church of the Castle. In fact it holds the so-called Holy Thorn, which is said to belong to the crown that girded Jesus Christ’s head during his Passion, and a Flemish triptych, dating back to the XV century and attributed to the painter Rogier Van der Weydene. Opening hours: Working days: 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. / 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Holidays days: 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. / 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Website: www.duomodicagliari.it

Piazza Palazzo Viewpoint

So small that it is hard to stand there on crowded days. However it is great and immense for the panorama that it offers. The terrace of the Piazza Palazzo (square), connected to the Terrapieno (Embankment) by a comfortable lift, is a cradle for the eyes. It embraces the whole north side of the city, the small and large suburban areas and presents waterfalls of capers forcing the rock to explode in a green flowered triumph. A fountain and benches invite to refreshment like the small outdoor coffee shops. It is another invitation to stop and stamp the beauty in your memory, even before than in a sacrosanct photo book.

St. Dominic Crypt

Ancient chants of monks still seem to echo. The slow steps in sandals still walk the corridors of the shaded cloister of St. Dominic, between vaults and candid arches. It is the kingdom of silence, reflection, carefree innocent children chasing each other between the well and the big trees in the central garden. In the back of the structure, sober celebrations respect the peace of the place, which has kept the soul of a time, the intimate spirit of a devoted neighbourhood.

In the west wing, the gaze lingers over the seven chapels dating back to the XV century, including the crypt of St. Dominic, characterized by ribbed vaults and pendulous gem. The colonnade with severe lines is muffled by decorated capitals with phytomorphic reliefs and animal figures.

St. Saturninus Basilica

Saturn or Saturninus? It’s only the first of many doubts that crowd around the Cagliari’s martyr who was beheaded at the height of the IV century A.D. He was really young (the Story is unclear regarding his age) when he proclaimed the Christian faith against the paganism, resulting in his decapitation – this is sure – on October 30th, date on which its citizens still remember him. His body was transported out of the city and buried in a cave that became his martyrdom. His story ended there, contrarily to the basilica erected on his burial. In 1089, it was donated to the Vittorini monks of Marseilles, who established a priory and restored the church according to the canons of the Romanesque architecture of Provence. In the first half of 1300, during the Catalan siege, the monastery was severely damaged, falling completely in ruins a century later. In 1714 the church was granted to the guild of Physicians and Apothecaries and they dedicated it to the patron saints Cosmas and Damian. Another step for the church was its reopening for worship in 1996.

The area behind hosts a Roman necropolis.

Phone number: 070659869

Free entrance

Bonaria Little Sanctuary

The soft light created by the rose window is projected rhythmically in the unique small nave. It welcomes the faithful; he wraps them in an intimate embrace, unrelated to the stateliness of the exterior of the Basilica of Bonaria. Once one walks through the bronze portal, the sanctuary uncloses like a treasure chest of faith. It is still present the astonishment that struck dumb the faithful in 1370 when they discovered a mysterious case coming from the sea, containing a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Child, carved from a single piece of wood of carob tree. The same statue that, even today, blesses with her maternal gaze the many pilgrims who visit the sanctuary every day and brides and grooms who choose to exchange their wedding vows.

The small church is a fine example of Catalan Gothic architecture in Sardinia. It dates back to the early XIV century, when Catalans besieged the city. Externally, the building is made of limestone blocks. The front is inserted by elements of the destroyed church of San Francesco of Stampace.

The hall, a single nave, culminates in an apse with polygonal termination. The side chapels in the southern side present a barrel vault ceiling that replaces the original one in wood.

The current size of the sanctuary is due to the restoration done in the mid-XIX century. The original parts are located in the presbytery, the only section still standing of the structure of ​​the XIV century, with a semi-decagonal termination overhung by an umbrella vault. (non sono sicura di questa traduzione, non conosco bene le termine dell’architettura e questa parola non lo trovata proprio, sembrerebbe avvicinarsi di più questo termine)

It adjoins the stately Basilica of Bonaria (link) built in 1700.

 

Address: Piazza Bonaria, 2

Phone number: 070301747

Website: www.bonaria.eu

Opening hours:

Winter : 6:30 a.m.  to 11: 45 a.m. / 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

 Summer: 6:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. / 4:30 p.m. to 7:45 p.m.