In Sardinian folklore, the little rock-cut tombs scattered across the island were the homes of janas, tiny fairies or witches who wove on golden looms and came out at night. Archaeologists call them domus de janas, fairy houses, and date them to the Neolithic and Copper Age, thousands of years before the famous nuraghi towers. The necropolis of Istevéne, near Mamoiada in the heart of the Barbagia, is a group of these chambers cut into the granite, some with carved details imitating the beams and doorways of real houses, and it belongs among the prehistoric Sardinian tombs that have gained UNESCO recognition.
Mamoiada itself is famous for its carnival, when the Mamuthones, men in dark wooden masks and sheepskins hung with heavy cowbells, move through the streets in a slow, rhythmic procession, a ritual that is ancient, haunting and very much alive. The village has a museum dedicated to Mediterranean masks, and it is also known for its Cannonau wine, made from vineyards on the granite slopes around the town. Nearby Orgosolo is famous for its political murals and its history of banditry.
The Barbagia is the wild heart of Sardinia, a land of granite hills, cork oaks, holm oaks and sheep. The roads are a delight for riders: winding, often empty, with good surfaces in places and broken, patched sections in others. Distances look short on the map but take time, and wandering sheep, goats, cattle and pigs are common hazards. Summer brings heat and the risk of forest fires, while winter can bring snow to the higher ground.
Mamoiada and Orgosolo are small towns with basic services, so for a sure supply of fuel and a wider choice, look to Oliena, about thirteen kilometres away, or Nuoro, the provincial capital. Local food is hearty and pastoral: roast suckling pig, lamb, pecorino cheese, carta da musica flatbread and culurgiones, stuffed pasta from the interior.
Spring, when the hills are green and the asphodel flowers, is the loveliest season, with autumn a close second. Visit Istevéne quietly, look into those small dark doorways cut into the rock, and remember that people buried their dead here long before Rome or even the nuraghi, in a land that still keeps many of its oldest rituals alive.