Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu and Necropolis of Istevéne

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. 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.

   Read the complete Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu is where the day begins. Next is Necropolis of Sant'Andrea Priu.

2. 2. Necropolis of Sant'Andrea Priu

   Four or five thousand years ago, people on the high plateau of Campo di Santa Lucia in Sardinia carved a whole apartment of rooms into a cliff of soft volcanic rock, to house their dead. The Sardinians call these rock-cut tombs domus de janas, houses of the fairies, and Sant'Andrea Priu, near Bonorva, has some of the most remarkable. The largest, known as the Tomba del Capo, has a series of chambers whose walls and ceilings imitate the beams and pillars of a real house. Centuries later, in the early Christian and Byzantine period, it was converted into a church and its walls were painted with frescoes, some of which survive.

   Read the complete Necropolis of Sant'Andrea Priu write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Necropolis of Sant'Andrea Priu comes up about 68 km into the recorded legs. Next is Necropolis of Istevéne.

3. 3. Necropolis of Istevéne

   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.

   Read the complete Necropolis of Istevéne write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 150 km into the recorded legs you reach Necropolis of Istevéne. Next is back through Necropolis of Sant'Andrea Priu.

4. 4. back through Necropolis of Sant'Andrea Priu

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Necropolis of Sant'Andrea Priu write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Necropolis of Sant'Andrea Priu, late in the day. Next is Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu.

5. 5. Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Back at Necropolis of Su Crucifissu Mannu. That is the ride.