Necropolis of Sos Furrighesos and Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
278 km
Riding-time estimate
5 h 39
Journey
Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
278 km from Ozieri to Ozieri, about 5 h 39 of riding. On the way it passes Necropolis of Mesu ‘e Montes, Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante, Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu and back through Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante. The line favours views over speed.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Necropolis of Sos Furrighesos
In the Goceano hills of north-central Sardinia, a low cliff of pale volcanic rock above the village of Anela hides one of the island's more striking prehistoric cemeteries. Sos Furrighesos is a cluster of domus de janas, the rock-cut tombs whose Sardinian name means houses of the fairies, carved into the face of the stone by Neolithic farmers some five thousand years ago. Some of the chambers are simple niches; others open into several rooms, and a few still carry carved reliefs of bull horns, a symbol you meet again and again in Sardinian prehistory.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Necropolis of Sos Furrighesos is where the day begins. Next is Necropolis of Mesu ‘e Montes.
2. Necropolis of Mesu ‘e Montes
Inland from Sassari, the Logudoro is a country of limestone ridges, small towns of honey-coloured stone and fields enclosed by dry walls, and in its folds lies the necropolis of Mesu 'e Montes, near the villages of Ossi, Muros and Florinas. It is a group of domus de janas, the rock-cut tombs of Sardinia's prehistoric farmers, some of them richly decorated with carved pillars, false doors and the stylised bull horns that seem to have been a symbol of protection or power.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Necropolis of Mesu ‘e Montes comes up about 49 km into the recorded legs. Next is Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante.
3. Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante
On the side of the main road below Castelsardo, in northern Sardinia, a huge reddish rock stands alone at a bend, and it really does look like an elephant, trunk lowered, as if about to drink. It is a block of volcanic trachyte that broke away from the hills above and was sculpted by wind and rain into its strange shape. What most passing drivers miss is that its base was used long before anyone thought of elephants: two prehistoric tombs, domus de janas, were cut into the rock in the Neolithic period, and in one of them carved horn shapes, the symbol of the bull, can still be made out.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 102 km into the recorded legs you reach Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante. Next is Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu.
4. Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu
Sardinians call them domus de janas, houses of the fairies, and when you crouch at the entrance of one you understand the name. They are tombs cut straight into the soft limestone by the island's Neolithic and Copper Age people, small chambers linked by low doorways, sometimes with carved false doors or bull horns on the walls. The necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu, just inland from Porto Torres, holds a couple of dozen of them scattered across a low rocky plateau among fields and scrub, one of the largest groups in the north of the island.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Necropolis of Sos Furrighesos closes the day.
Leg by leg
Necropolis of Sos Furrighesos to Necropolis of Mesu ‘e Montes
Necropolis of Sos Furrighesos → Necropolis of Mesu ‘e Montes is 49 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Necropolis of Mesu ‘e Montes to Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante
Necropolis of Mesu ‘e Montes → Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante is 53 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante to Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu
Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante → Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu is 37 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu to back through Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante
Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu → back through Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante is 32 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante to back through Necropolis of Mesu ‘e Montes
back through Domus de janas of Roccia dell’Elefante → back through Necropolis of Mesu ‘e Montes is 59 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Necropolis of Mesu ‘e Montes to Necropolis of Sos Furrighesos
back through Necropolis of Mesu ‘e Montes → Necropolis of Sos Furrighesos is 49 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.