INTRODUCTORY INFORMATIONS

1. Physical Geography.

2. History, Government, and National Character.

3. Agriculture and Natural Productions.

4. Climate; Intemperie, or Malaria.

5. Game, Sporting, and Fisheries.

6. Antiquities, Nuraghi, &c.

7. Money, Weights, and Measures.

8. Native Hospitality.

9. Season for Travelling; Plans of tours.

10. Books on Sardinia, Maps, &c.

11. Voyages from Genoa to Cagliari and Porto Torres.

12. Railways.

1. PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF THE ISLAND

SARDINIA is situated between 38° 52′ and 41° 16′ N. latitude, and 8° 10′ and 9° 50′ of E. longitude from Greenwich; its greatest length is 147, and its breadth 70 geographical miles; it includes an area of nearly 7000 sq. miles (29,250 kil. carrés), of which nine-tenths consist of mountainous districts, the remaining tenth of the great plain situated between the gulfs of Cagliari and Oristano, and of the alluvial districts at the mouths of the larger rivers.

The island is besides surrounded by the several smaller ones of Sant’ Antioco, San Pietro, Asinara, La Maddalena, Caprera, Tavolara, &c., which may include an area of about 80 sq. miles. The four principal watercourses, designated as rivers from being never dried up, are the Tirso, the Flumendosa, the Coghinas, and the Fiume Bosa; the first and last running towards the western coast, the second to the east, and the third to the north. There are besides a multitude of smaller streams which have only water during the rainy season.

The mountains in the northern portion of Sardinia are formed chiefly of granite. Those of the centre, and especially the most elevated peak, Gennargentu, belong to the paleozoic formations, which extend in a southern direction to Cape Carbonara, which form also the mountains in the S.W. part of the island, between the gulfs of Oristano and Cape Teulada. It is chiefly on the rocks of this series that rest the extensive supercretaceous or tertiary hills, as it has been through them that have risen the varied volcanic rocks of different ages, which afford so interesting a field for the researches of the geologist in Sardinia.

The mineral deposits are some lead-mines, now little worked; considerable deposits of anthracite coal, south of Monte Gennargentu, in the paleozoic strata; and some deposits of lignite in the lower tertiary strata. The granitic rocks of the N.E. extremity have been worked by the Romans, and during the middle ages by the Pisans, for architectural purposes.

2. HISTORY OF SARDINIA

Scarcely anything is known of Sardinia before it was invaded by the Carthaginians B.C. 508. Some Greek authors, in speaking of it under the name of Ichnusa, allude to Greek, Pelasgic, and Iberian coloniesthat had settled on it, and add that it had attained under them a flourishing condition, when it was invaded by certain Libyan tribes, who, after devastating the regions bordering on the coast, obliged the inhabitants to take refuge in the high mountainous districts of the N. and centre of the island, where they continued long to defend themselves.

After the Libyan invasion arrived the Carthaginians, B.C. 512, who held Sardinia for 270 years, or until B.C. 259, when the Romans formed their first establishment in it under L. Cornelius Scipio. But the Sardinians maintained a continued warfare with their invaders until B.C. 176, when Tib. Sempronius Gracchus reduced them to final subjection.

From that period Sardinia followed the fortunes and vicissitudes of the Roman world, of which it had become one of the principal granaries. At the fall of the Empire it was overrun by the Vandals, the Goths, and the Saracens. Towards the beginning of the seventh century, having embraced Christianity, the Popes interfered to protect its inhabitants, even to claiming the sovereignty of the island for themselves. The Saracens and Arabs continued to harass the island to such a degree, that John XVIII. preached a crusade against them in 1004, promising the sovereignty to whoever would expel the infidels.

The republics of Genoa and Pisa accepted the offer, expelled the Moors, and then began to dispute among themselves about ‘the, division of the spoils. The Pisans, however, in 1025 remained masters of Sardinia, dividing the island into four judicatures-Cagliari, Logudoro, Arborea, and Gallura – the government of which was confided to judges sent from Pisa, who soon endeavoured to establish for themselves small hereditary and independent sovereignties recognising only the authority of the metropolis; the Popes, however, still continuing to maintain their sovereignty, and having occasion to quarrel with Pisa, transferred it in 1320 to the Kings of Aragon.

A long and sanguinary contest between the Pisans and the Aragonese was the consequence. It was not until the reign of Ferdinand the Catholic in 1481 that Sardinia could be finally considered as a dependency of the Crown of Aragon and of Spain. During the War of the Succession, after the death of Charles II., Sardinia was often the theatre of the hostile operations between Austria and Spain, until by the Treaties of Utrecht in 1714, and of London in 1720, the first of these powers became invested with the sovereignty. In the latter year the Emperor Charles VI. exchanged it for Sicily with Victor Amadeus II. of Savoy, who assumed the title of King of Sardinia, since borne by his successors.

Sardinia had been governed as a colony by the Romans, the Greek Emperors, and the Pisans. It is only under the last of the Pisan governors or judges that we perceive any approach to a national government in the charter granted by the Giudichessa (Judgess) Eleonora of Arborea, and which was subsequently extended to the entire island in 1421 by Alphonso of Aragon. In 1355 Don Pedro of Aragon had convoked a Cortes, or National Assembly, composed of three Stamenti, or orders — of the clergy, the military or nobles, and the representatives of towns.

These Stamenti voted the taxes, which were considered in the light of a gift (Donativa) to the Sovereign, in return for the favours bestowed upon them by him. The Kings of Spain, in ratifying the institutions of Don Pedro, called together at intervals the Cortes until 1699.

The Sovereigns of the house of Savoy limited their convocations of these National Assemblies to asking from each of the Stamenti an augmentation of their Donativa. The Stamento of the nobles disappeared necessarily with the abolition of the feudal system; the ecclesiastical could no longer reconcile their fidelity to Rome with the independence of their country; and as the Royal Stamento, or that of the citizens, consisted only of the deputies of the towns, the population of the rural districts taking no part in it, the Cortes ceased to be a real representation of the island, and fell into disuse.

From the transfer of the island to the house of Savoy it may be considered to have been governed as a colony, paternally, it is true, but necessarily in the interests of their continental possessions, until 1848, when the late King promulgated the Charter or Statuto, since which Sardinia is assimilated, as regards its government and in every respect, to the rest of the kingdom, sending 24 representatives to the Lower House of Parliament, and having several of its citizens in the Senate.

All separate custom-house regulations have been abolished. The ports of the island in their trade with those of terra firma are considered in the same light as the ports of the continental possessions. This tardy return to a better system has already shown its advantages. Public roads are rapidly progressing in every part of the island, education is extending, agriculture is already much improved, and from the progress already made there is every reason  to believe that before many years Sardinia will occupy the important commercial position in the Mediterranean it deserves, intermediate as it is situated between Spain, France, and Africa, and almost in sight of the coasts of Italy.

Sardinia is now divided into 11 provinces, which bear the same names as the chief towns-Cagliari, Iglesias, Isili, Oristano, Sassari, Alghero, Ozieri, Tempio, Nuoro, Cuglieri, and Lanusei.  (We may state, once for all, that we have throughout adopted the spelling of the different localities given on General La Marmora’s large map of the island). The Population, according to the last census (1863), was 588,065. The chief military authority, Comandante Militare, resides at Cagliari, and has under his orders between 2000 and 3000 troops.

All religions are tolerated, although the inhabitants are exclusively Roman Catholic. Italian is the language of the educated classes; that of the lower orders, indeed of the great mass of the people, is a mixture of Latin, Spanish, and Italian.

The latter is, however, generally understood, and, being now the official one, is becoming every day more so; but if the traveller should branch off from the more frequented roads, he must take with him a guide, or viandante, who understands the colloquial dialects of the country. The Costumes, especially those of the females, are peculiar and often picturesque; they will be noticed more at length in the description of the several Routes.

The Sardinian character is a result of the historical conditions and of the physical circumstances of the country. Intelligent and passionate like all the inhabitants of the South, honest and simple in his ways, the Sarde is taxed with laziness and a dislike to strangers, feelings which may be easily referred to the facility he has of providing for his subsistence from the fertility of the soil, and to the system which preceded the new order of things, which did not leave him the free possession of his labour.

His vindictive disposition may be explained by the inability in former times to obtain by legal means reparation for the wrongs he had to suffer; indeed in this latter respect an improvement in the Sardinian character is already apparent; but at all times the Sarde is essentially generous and open-hearted, and the most cordial hospitality has been one of the marked traits of his character. It is almost without example that a Sardinian has been known to get rid of an enemy by hidden or disloyal means, and on this subject we cannot do better than quote what has been said by General della Marmora, who has travelled during thirty years through the country, visiting the most savage, uncivilised, and out-of-the-way districts, in the course of his important topographical and geological researches.

“My excursions and my relations in their (Sardinians) country have persuaded me that no people who had been so long placed under such unfavourable and negative circumstances could have borne up so patiently. Impartial justice towards all, exercised with firmness, and severity when necessary, respect for property and personal security, guarantees against the oppression of the subaltern authorities, are what are desired by the Sardinian peasant from the government, for whose authority they have the greatest respect, especially if exercised in the name of the king, whose name is to them a kind of talisman.” (Voyage en Sardaigne, tom. I. p. 195).

INDEX

9. SEASON FOR TRAVELLING-PLANS OF TOURS, &c.

In consequence of the insalubrity of the climate, it is impossible to travel during more than six months in the year, from the end of November until the early part of June, and considerable difficulty would attend it in winter from the rains, the torrents being often unfordable: it is only therefore between the months of March and July that travelling can be performed agreeably. We would therefore advise our countrymen proceeding to Sardinia to be at Turin by the last week in March, where they can procure letters of introduction through the British minister, or the Sardinian gentlemen residing in the capital during the legislative session, and to embark from Genoa about the 25th, selecting from amongst the following routes, which embrace all the most interesting points of the island, those best suited to their tastes and pursuits.

FIRST TOUR. In a carriage: Number of Days to be employed.
Embark at Genoa to Porto Torres: 1
• Sassari and environs: 3
• Sassari to Alghero: 1
• Halt at, and its environs: 1
– Many interesting excursions may be also made from Alghero to the Grotto of Neptune, &c.
• Alghero to Ozieri and environs: 3
• Ozieri to Macomer and environs: 2
– Excursion from Macomer to Bosa: 2
– Excursion from Macomer to Silanus: 2
– Now that the carriage-road is open as far as Nuoro, a very interesting excursion of 4 days may be made in that direction from Macomer to Milis: 1
• Milis to Oristano and excursions in the environs 3
• Oristano to Cagliari 1
– Excursions from Cagliari 8
• Cagliari to Iglesias, the islands of Sant’ Antioco 5
• San Pietro, and back 5
• Cagliari to Laconi and back 5

Tot. days of first tour: 38

SECOND TOUR. Partly in carriage, partly on horseback:
By adding the following routes to those of the preceding tour:

• From Sassari to Tempio, by Castel Sardo and Castel Doria, returning by Martis (on horseback) – days 4
• From Silanus to Nuoro and back (in carriage): 3
• From Milis to Cuglieri, returning by Santa Caterina de’ Pittinuri to Oristano: 3

• From Iglesias to Flumini Maggiore, returning by Guspini, Gonnos Fanadiga, and Decimo Mannu, to Cagliari: 3
– Excursion from Laconi through the mountains of Gennargentu, Barbagia, Ogliastra, &c. 5

Total days of second tour: 18

THIRD TOUR – Partly in carriage, partly on horseback:
Landing at the island of La Maddalena, where the steamer from Genoa calls on certain days, the traveller can proceed to Parau, from whence he must send to Tempio for horses.

• From Parau to Tempio (on horseback): 2
– Environs of Tempio: 2
• Tempio to Sassari, by Castel Doria and Castel Sardo: 2
– Environs of Sassari: 8
• Sassari to Alghero by the mountains of La Nurra: 2
Environs of Alghero: 1
• Alghero to Bosa by the Monte Leone: 2
• Bosa to Macomer (in carriage): 1
– Excursion from Macomer by Silanus, Bolotana, the Castle of Goceano, to Nuoro and back (in carriage): 7
– Excursion from Macomer to Oristano, by Santu Lussurgiu, the forest of Monte Ferru, Cuglieri, and Santa Caterina de’ Pittinuri, the site of Cornus: 3
– Environs of Oristano: 2
– Excursion from Oristano to Iglesias, by Guspini, Flumini Maggiore, and the forest of Antas: 3
– Excursion to Porto Scuso, the islands of San Pietro and Sant’ Antioco, and the Gulf of Palmas (in carriage): 2
– Excursion from Iglesias to Cagliari (in carriage): 1
– Environs of Cagliari, as in Tour I.: 8
– Excursion from Cagliari to Muravera, Tertenia, Tortolì, and Lanusei (on horseback): 4
– Excursion to Laconi, round Gennargentu, and through the mountain region of la Barbagia (on horseback): 7
– Excursion from Laconi to Cagliari (in carriage): 2

Total days: 59

INDEX

10. BOOKS AND MAPS

ALBERTO DELLA MARMORA: Voyage en Sardaigne, ou Description statistique, physique, et politique de cette Isle: Paris et Turin, 1839, 1840, 1860; 5 vols. 8vo. This is by far the most useful and exact work on Sardinia that has ever appeared. The first volume contains the historical, geographical, and statistical description of the island; the second the archæological; the third includes the physical and geological; the fourth, entitled Itinéraire de l’Isle de Sardaigne, pour faire suite au voyage dans cette contrée-2 vols. 8vo. Turin, 1860 will prove perhaps the most useful to the traveller, being a detailed guide brought up to the latest moment, and divided into routes through the different parts of the Island; besides the details on Topography, Archæology, and Natural History, the author has interspersed many curious details of personal anecdote, local adventure, &c.

MANNO: Storia della Sardegna: Torino, 1825. Contains the best history of the island, by Baron Manno, a Member of the Sardinian Senate.

Capt. W. H. SMYTH: A sketch of the present state of the Island of Sardinia: 1 vol. 8vo. 1828. Very accurate as to the description of the coasts, which he had surveyed during the war, but inferior to La Marmora in its physical and archæological details.

1849. WARRE TYNDALE: The Island of Sardinia, in 3 volumes: London, 1849. Many of the details to interest the tourist are derived from La Marmora’s researches, accompanied by a great deal of interesting and useful information, collected during the author’s residence in, and travels through, the island; after La Marmora’s work, it is by far the best which the traveller will find on Sardinia, and, with the exception of the latter, incomparably superior to every other.

VALERY: Voyages en Corse et en Sardaigne: 2 vols. in 8vo, Paris, 1837. Made up, like most of this author’s books, of information derived from other sources; more amusing as the production of an agreeable and credulous writer than accurate as a work of observation.

A work on the antiquities of Sardinia was published in 1853 by General della Marmora, Sopra alcune Antichità Sarde: 1 vol. 4to., Turin, 1853.

MAPS.- Carta dell’Isola e Regno di Sardegna, del Generale Alberto Ferrero della Marmora: Paris and Turin, 1845; 2 sheets. This most beautifully executed map will be indispensable to the traveller in Sardinia. It is chiefly, indeed almost entirely, the result of the surveys made during several years by the lamented nobleman whose name it bears, and executed in a great measure at his expense. A convenient reduction to the scale of one quarter is inserted in the author’s Itinéraire, and may be procured separately at Turin; and a smaller one will be found in the work noticed at the head of this article, and in Mr. Tyndale’s book.

INDEX

11. VOYAGES FROM GENOA TO CAGLIARI AND PORTO TORRES

Steamers leave Genoa four times a week for Sardinia-on Mondays and Thursdays for Cagliari at 9 P.M., and on Wednesdays and Saturdays, also at 9 P.M., for Porto Torres, all calling at Leghorn. The direct boats for Cagliari run down the E. coast of Corsica, make the island of La Tavolara, overrun by wild goats, and arrive off Tortolì on the second morning; here the boat of the first and third Saturdays in every month lands passengers.

Tortolì is 2 m. from the sea, in a very unhealthy district, which has obliged the authorities to remove to Lanusei, more inland. Tortolì has 1700 Inhab., and is celebrated for its oranges.

Some Roman inscriptions have been discovered in the neighbourhood. Travellers may proceed inland from hence, but they will experience difficulty in procuring horses. Leaving Tortolì, the steamer coasts along by Cape Bellavista, S. of which numerous towers are seen along the coast, erected against the incursions of the Barbary pirates.

One of those at S. Giovanni di Sarralà [or Tertenia], 20 m. S. of Tortolì, was the scene of a very heroic defence against these marauders as late as 1812, when an individual whose name deserves to be handed down, Seb. Melis, the Alcalde, attacked by a considerable number of Turks, defended himself for 10 hours, after having lost his son and the only soldier in the tower, until relieved by a levée en masse from the country around. Beyond this the mouth of the Flumendosa (the ancient Sæprus), the largest watercourse on the E. side of the island, is passed, and 20 m. farther Cape Carbonara, the E. headland of the great gulf of Cagliari. The steamer of the second Saturday in each month calls at the island of Capraja.

Steamers run between Genoa and Porto Torres, leaving the former every Wednesday and Saturday evening, the latter passing by Leghorn, and calling at Bastia and the island of Maddalena.

There are also steamers from Cagliari to Palermo and Tunis on Thursdays at 9 P.M.

As all the steamers start from Genoa, and with days and hours varying with the seasons, precise information can only be obtained there.

On landing at Cagliari the traveller will be subjected to neither custom-house nor police visits: before landing his luggage he will do well to secure lodgings, as from the small accommodation in the hotels he may not find room, and be obliged to wander through the steep streets long before finding a place to deposit it in.

The steamers that leave Genoa for Porto Torres on Tuesday at 9 A.M. run along the western coast of Corsica, entering the Gulf of Asinara, leaving the island of that name-now almost deserted on the right hand. About 24 to 26 hours after leaving Genoa, passengers are landed at Porto Torres. A steamer every Friday at 8 P.M.; calls at Leghorn on Saturday morning, reaches Bastia at 5 P.M. the same day, at the island of Maddalena and Porto Torres next morning at 11.

There is a weekly line of steamers between Cagliari and the island of La Maddalena, calling at Muravera on Sunday morning; at Tortolì, Orosei, Siniscola, and Terranova on Monday; arriving at La Maddalena on Tuesday morning; returning by the same route from La Maddalena on Wednesday at 11 A.M.

The island of La Maddalena, the Ilva of the Romans, is an immense mass of granite with some cultivation. The principal town on the sea-shore contains 2000 Inhab., and as seen front the sea has an appearance of prosperity.

The population is entirely given to maritime pursuits; the men exclusively to a seafaring life; the women, who are very beautiful, during the absence of the husbands looking after their domestic concerns, one of their principal occupations being grinding corn with hand-mills, there not being any other kind of mill in the island.

On landing the traveller will see a shell placed on a marble pedestal, which is preserved as having been fired against the town in 1793 by young Napoleon, when a lieutenant of artillery, during an unsuccessful attack of the French against it. It was in the roads of La Maddalena that Lord Nelson established his principal rendezvous when he commanded the Mediterranean fleet in 1803-4. S. of La Maddalena, the E. coast of Sardinia, which is granitic, presents a singular accident in decomposing, noticed by Ptolemy-a rock which, seen from the sea, offers the form of a bear seated, from which the promontory on which it stands is called the Capo d’Orso.

The traveller who wishes to examine the N.E. extremity of Sardinia can proceed in a boat (2 miles) to Palau, and from thence to Tempio (see Route 2), but before undertaking this journey it will be necessary to have ordered horses from the latter place.

In the voyage from La Maddalena to Porto Torres the steamer runs close under Capes del Falcone and della Testa, between which lies the port of Longone Sardo or Santa Teresa, above which rises an Aragonese castle.

On Cape della Testa are some remains of Roman edifices, mosaics, and subterranean canals. Upon it are the granite quarries of Santa Reparata, from which a vast quantity of that rock, which we see in the monuments of ancient Rome, was brought; and in more modern times the columns of the cathedral and baptistery of Pisa.

The voyage from La Maddalena to Porto Torres occupies between 4 and 5 hours.

The steamer from Porto Torres to Genoa sails every Friday at 8 A.M., and that which calls at La Maddalena, Bastia, and Leghorn, on Tuesdays at 8 A.M.

None yet completed, but several decreed by a law promulgated on Jan. 4, 1863, and in progress, the principal trunk being that from Porto Torres to Cagliari, passing by Sassari, Macomer, and Oristano, with branch lines from Torralba to Ozieri and Terranova, on the Gulf of Gli Aranci; and from Assemini to Iglesias; these several lines will follow very nearly the present high-roads de cribed in the following Routes.

INDEX

ROUTE I.

FROM PORTOTORRES TO CAGLIARI

146 miles

I.1. PORTO TORRES – SASSARI

Porto Torres, built on the site of the Roman Turris Libsonis, and once the seat of an archbishop, with 2140 Inhab., was reduced to the state of a poor village in the middle ages; since the establishment of the steam-packets between the mainland and Sardinia it has regained a certain importance as the point from which a regular communication is kept up with Genoa, the packets arriving every Friday and Monday, and returning on Sunday and Wednesday.

There is also a weekly steamer to and from Bastia, corresponding with the line of packets between the latter port and Marseilles. An omnibus starts for Sassari several times a day, fare 2 fr.

Carriages will be found on the arrival of the steamers, to convey parties to Sassari for 18 fr., the driver’s pour boire included.

The small harbour is convenient; the stream that empties itself into it is crossed by a Roman bridge of several arches, behind which are marshes, the cause of the insalubrity of the place.

Between the port and the bridge are the ruins of a large temple dedicated to Fortune, alongside of which stood a basilica, as proved by an inscription relative to its repairs during the reign of Philip, A.D. 247, found among the debris. To this edifice has been given the name of Il Palazzo del Re Barbaro, probably from Barbarus, the Roman governor in the first years of the 4th century. The roof has fallen in, but the remains of stairs, columns, &c., may be seen. The inscriptions, sculptures, and pottery found here have been carried to Sassari. An aqueduct of the Roman period still supplies water to the town.

There is a fair inn at Porto Torres, where, in the event of the arrival of the steamer at a late hour, the traveller can pass the night without inconvenience.

As the boats arrive generally before 2 o’clock in the day, a couple of hours will enable him to visit the neighbouring ruins, and to reach Sassari the same evening.

At Porto Torres commences the great Strada Centrale, or Reale, which connects it with Cagliari: commenced in 1822, it was completed 7 years afterwards, at an expense of 158,480l. sterling, its total length being 146 miles (234.821 mètres). It was the first carriage-road made in the island, and is still the greatest artery of communication.

Rly. in progress, following nearly the same line as the present carriage-road.

About 10 minutes’ drive beyond the port the road passes before the ch. of S. Gavino, of the 11th centy., built of materials from the neighbouring Roman edifices; in the walls is an ancient sarcophagus, with a bas-relief of Apollo and the Muses; in the crypt another sepulchral urn. This crypt is surrounded by statues of saints, in a very fair style for the period.

The country around Porto Torres is bare, with some scattered plants of lentiscus, rosemary, juniper, and a few palm-trees, that show we have already arrived within the 40th degree of latitude.

The road to Sassari is over an undulating country, with some enclosures surrounded by stone walls; scarcely a human being is to be met, except an occasional Sarde on horseback, armed with his long musket, and enveloped in his Capucin hood, often with a woman clothed in a red petticoat seated behind him.

3 m. beyond Porto Torres is the first Cantoniera, on the Strada Centrale, and which we shall meet at regular distances all the way to the capital, a kind of maison de refuge or caravanserai, but where the traveller will find little more than a covering during the storm. When the road was first made it had been intended to establish places of refreshment along it; but the Sardinian, so hospitable himself, expected to meet with similar treatment in the establishments of the Government; hence it is that the cantonniers could not keep their houses open on such terms, and there are now scarcely any that can furnish a bed to the wayfarer.

5 m. farther on is the Cantoniera of Ottava, near which we pass the torrent of the same name, on which, in the middle ages, stood the village of Ottava, or ad Octavam from Turris. The country on the rt., extending to the Castle of La Crucca, is better cultivated, having been colonised by a Piedmontese gentleman named Maffei. Beyond this are some ruins of a Roman aqueduct which conveyed water to Sassari, and a small nurhag much dilapidated. The country onwards is better cultivated.

At 12 m. from Porto Torres we reach

SASSARI. (Inns: Albergo del Progresso, opened in 1854. fair enough, with a table-d’hôte at 3 livres; another, kept by a Piedmontese called Giovannino, is also very tolerable: there is a café in the Grande Rue, with the local and Piedmontese newspapers.)

This city, with a population of 22,000 Inhab. before the outbreak of the cholera in Aug. 1855, has scarcely now 15,000: it is built on a slight declivity at 650 feet above the level of the sea, and traversed in its whole length by a principal street, which ends at the old Aragonese castle. The walls date from the Genoese period, and one of their towers still bears the name of La Torre Doria: they have been in a great measure pulled down to make room for modern buildings. The castle, erected in 1330, now converted into a barrack, is very picturesque; on the façade may still be seen the arms of Aragon.

The cathedral, with a good but heavy modern front, contains a fair enough picture of the school of the Caraccis, and the tomb of the Comte de la Maurienne, a brother of Victor Emmanuel I., who died at Sassari in 1802, during the emigration of the royal family. The church of La Trinita has a Deposition, painted in the 15th centy.; the ch. of Bethlem is in the Byzantine style. The University, founded in the 17th centy., has now nearly 150 students; its library contains about 10,000 vols., chiefly on jurisprudence and theology, with some MSS. of local interest. Sassari is the seat of an archbishop and capital of a province.

The Municipalità and the theatre are in good taste: a new hospital is in progress.

The modern Vallombrosa Saturnino and San Sebastiano palaces are in the style of those at Genoa of the last centy.

There is only one fountain in the town, Il Rosello, with an equestrian statue of San Gavino over it. Although an abundant supply of good water might be distributed through the town from the neighbouring hills, it is now carried by donkeys from the fountain. With the exception of the principal street, called Piazza, the rest of the town consists of narrow streets; but on the outskirts, and along the line of old walls, some good walks, with more modern constructions, have been erected.

Sassari was devastated by the cholera in August, 1855, more than one-third of the pop population having been carried off in 20 days a visitation it will require a long time to repair the consequences of. The town of Ozieri suffered in an almost equal degree. The traveller will do well to walk up to the convent of the Capucins, on a height to the S.E. of the town: the view from it is very extensive.

The garden of the Duke of Vallombrosa at S. Pietro is remarkable for its gigantic myrtles, the trunks of some of which are 4 feet in circumference. Other gardens in the valley of Logulentu offer a mixture semitropical plants with those of the island, the valley itself being covered with stone pines, almond and orange trees, with palms interspersed.

On the road to Cagliari may be seen an abandoned windmill, the only one of the kind ever erected in Sardinia, and which has never been used, in consequence, on the eve when it was to have commenced grinding, of a shot having been fired by some unknown hand against the door-an intelligible warning in this country to the proprietor to suspend operations, and sent probably by the numerous owners of water-mills in the neighbourhood. These kinds of notices, and the more serious consequence of neglecting to attend to them, have greatly diminished, and are now almost entirely confined to love rivalities.

One of the curious scenes at Sassari is the return of the labourers in the evening. The traveller will have already remarked the strange costume of the men; all the peasants go and return from their work in the fields fully mounted, and armed with long carabines; their dress cousists, according to the season, of sundry vestments of a coarse black cloth, called furresi, manufactured in the country; the principal portion consists of a large capote, under which is a leather waistcoat (collettu), which descends to the knees; a belt is buckled round the collettu; the legs are covered with black gaiters (borzaghinos), above which are wide flowing trowsers in canvas, the only part of the costume not of lugubrious black; the cap (beretta) is also black. It is only in the mountainous districts that the Sardinian peasant allows his beard to grow.

THE ROUTES

– Excursion from Sassari: Osilo.

The traveller not overpressed for time may employ two days in visiting in the neighbourhood of Sassari.

Osilo, a large village 6 m. off, can only be reached on horseback. The excursion cannot be made in less than 6 hrs., passing first through cultivated fields with olive trees, and separated by hedges, and then over a dry calcareous of tract, in the ravines of which are excavations which have evidently served as sepulchres at a very remote period.

3 m. from Sassari we arrive on the brink of an escarpment over the valley which surrounds Osilo, situated on a volcanic protuberance 2132 feet above the sea, and in the centre of a craterlike cavity. The edges of this the ruined castle of the Malaspinas, which rises above the village, the old towers of which rest on a rock of a prismatic structure. The panorama from these ruins embraces the whole N. part of the island, the Gulf of Asinara, and the southern part of Corsica, the greater portion of the Straits of Bonifacio, and the town of that name.

The village of Osilo, with 4750 Inhab., is irregularly built; the streets are so steep as to be scarcely approachable on horseback, but clean, all filth being removed to the outside of the village, where it is heaped up in circular mounds, which elsewhere would be a source of wealth to the agriculturist.

Osilo has progressed of late years; we find in it a casino and reading-room; the antiquated looms have been replaced by those à la Jacquard; and in no part of Sardinia is the costume of the females more picturesque. The upper dress is of scarlet cloth, with gold lace and silver buttons; the sleeves, wide, flowing, and open, exhibit beneath a chemise of fine white linen, carefully plaited; a white veil envelops the head and lower part of the face, a piece of red cloth covering the portion on the top of the head and shoulders.

Half an hour beyond Osilo is the chapel of Bonaria, 2400 feet above the sea, and from which the view is still more extensive than from the castle of the Malaspinas.

A still more interesting, although a longer excursion, may be made on horseback from Sassari to Ploaghe in 3 hrs., or half the distance may be performed in a carriage, after which the ascent to the village must be made on foot.

Leaving Sassari by the Strada Centrale, or high road to Cagliari, we arrive, after 2 m., at the top of an escarpment called the Scala di Giocca, which is the continuation of that on the way to Osilo; from here the road descends into the romantic valley of Giocca, which it follows to the Cantoniera di Cane e Chervu [1858: on the high road to Sassari].

• Here we must abandon the high road, taking a path on the 1. which follows the bottom of the valley to the church of la Madonna di Saccargia, a curious building of alternate zones of white and black marble, similar to the churches of Genoa and Pisa, with 3 arches in front, and a detached bell tower; it dates from the year 1116, and contains some paintings of the 14th centy. Behind this abbey the road becomes more and more romantic.

A walk of an hour brings us to the top of a plateau, where is situated the insulated chapel of Salvenero, a curious edifice, in alternate layers of white and black marble, of the 12th centy.; in half an hour more we reach Ploaghe, a village of 2870 inhab.

A new road to Ploaghe has been lately opened from the Cantoniera di Figuiruja, the distance 34 m.

1858 – Here we must abandon each horse, and the buonamano to the high road, taking a path on the 1. driver at the end of the journey of which follows the bottom of the valley 1 or 2 francs; it will be also necessary to the abbey of la Madonna di Saccargia, to pay the return-journey, if not other a curious building of alternate zones of wise agreed upon.

The tourist pre-white and black marble, similar to the ferring to perform the journey on horse-churches of Genoa and Pisa, with 3 back will find horses at Sassari, paying arches in front; it dates from the year 5 fr. a-day for his own and the same 1116, and contains some paintings of the for that of his viandante or guide, which 14th centy. Behind this abbey the road will also carry his light luggage.

The becomes more and more romantic. A viandante must be fed on the road walk of an hour brings us to the top of a plateau, where is situated the insulated chapel of Salvenero; in half an hour more we reach Ploaghe, a village of 3200 Inhab.

– Excursion from Sassari: Ploaghe.

Ploaghe was the seat of a bishop until the 16th centy., when it was united to the See of Torres. The curate’s house offers some traces of its former importance. North of the village rises a rounded peak, or mamelon, entirely composed of volcanic cinders, ascending which we discover from its summit a stream of lava, which, commencing from the village, runs, forming a narrow band, towards the W.

The ravine through which we have passed from the abbey of Saccargia to arrive at Ploaghe runs along the S. side of this current, whilst in returning we shall follow its N. side by the Nurhag Nieddu, built of volcanic materials, and which derives its name from its black colour, nieddu in Sardinian being the equivalent of black. This nurhag has its two stories well preserved, and of easy access: and although the entrance is low, scarcely 2 feet high, the traveller will do well to enter, as it will give him a good idea of this curious class of edifices; lower down the valley is the acidulous spring of S. Martino, at which there is an inconsiderable Bathing establishment; after which, turning the extremity of the lava current of Ploaghe, we soon reach la Cantoniera di Cane Chervu, on the high road to Sassari.

THE ROUTES

I.2.

SASSARI – Codrongianus – Bonnanaro – Borutta – Torralba – Giave – Bonorva – MACOMER

A diligence leaves Sassari every day for Cagliari, performing the journey in 30 hours, fare 35 lire; and omnibuses have been established to Ozieri by way of Torralba in 6 or 7 hrs., and to Alghero. Carriages can be hired at Sassari for Cagliari, by which the traveller can stop when and where he likes: the ordinary charge is 5 francs a-day for each horse, and the buonamano to the driver at the end of the journey of 1 or 2 francs; it will be also necessary to pay the return-journey, if not other-wise agreed upon.

The tourist preferring to perform the journey on horse-back will find horses at Sassari, paying 5 fr. a-day for his own and the same for that of his viandante or guide, which will also carry his light luggage. The viandante must be fed on the road.

The high road from Sassari to Cagliari follows nearly in its entire extent the line of a Roman road, several of the milestones that stood along which were discovered in making the new Strada Centrale.

Leaving the town we arrive at La Scala di Ciocca and the Cantoniera di Cane e Chervu, described above, from which an ascent of a quarter of an hour brings us to

Codrongianus, 12 m. from Sassari.

In the church are some bad pictures attributed to Guido and other great masters. Leaving here, we cross in a straight line the cultivated plain of the Campo Lazaro to the Cantoniera di Figu-ruia, and afterwards, near its source, the Rio de las Perdas Alvas, which falls into the sea at Porto Torres. From here the road follows the base of Monte Santo, which rises precipitately to a height of 2500 ft. above the sea; the summit of it is covered by a wood of cork-oak-trees. The Monte Pelao to the W. is also covered with a forest said to contain 250,000 trees.

The picturesque ravine which separates these two mountains was long the terror of travellers, but since the opening of the new road all danger of robbers or bandits has ceased.

Some remains of Roman constructions have been found hereabouts.

The villages of Bonnanaro and of Borutta (the wines of which resemble the Lacrima of Vesuvius, the soil being also volcanic) are left on the rt. hand, and after passing where the new road to Ozieri branches off on the l. we arrive after 13 m. at [The rly. to Ozieri and Terranova, will branch off from here and] Torralba, a village with 1120 Inhab. On the hill above it is the church of S. Pietro di Torres, formerly a bishop’s see, now falling into ruin without a trace of the episcopal town which surrounded the cathedral; the church, like that of Saccargia, built of alternate courses of white and black marble, is 115 ft. long and 50 wide, and offers some curious specimens of mediæval sculpture. To enter it the key must be sent for to the sacristan’s at Borutta.

The villages of Bonannaro and of Borutta (the wines of which resemble the Lacrima of Vesuvius, the soil being also volcanic) are left on the rt. hand, and after passing where the new road to Ozieri branches off on the 1. we arrive after 13 m. at Torralba, a village with 1200 Inhab. On the hill above it is the church of S. Pietro di Torres, formerly a bishop’s direction of Padora (the ancient Gurulis Vetus), 10 m.W. of Giave, where Phoenician and Roman coins and idols have been discovered, as well as some Cyclopean or polygonal constructions.

Six miles beyond the Cantonniera di Giave is that of Bonorva, where, contrary to the general rule, the traveller may find a not over-clean bed. Bonorva, a good-sized town, for this see, now falling into ruin without a trace of the episcopal town which surrounded the cathedral ; the church, like that of Saccargia, built of alternate courses of white and black marble, is 115 ft. long and 50 wide, and offers some curious specimens of medieval sculpture. To enter it the key must be sent for to the sacristan’s at Borutta.

Two miles beyond Torralba the road to Alghero branches off on the rt.: opposite is the chapel of Cabu-Abbas, and a fountain, which rises at the extremity of a current of lava descending from the volcanic crater of Cheremule on the rt. A short way beyond this, on the 1., are two of the most remarkable Nurhags in all Sardinia; that of Santu Antine has all the central chambers rising in 3 stories, one above the other, and, although the entrance is encumbered with rubbish, there is no difficulty in penetrating into it: this passage opens into the spiral staircase which communicates with the several chambers.

This Nurhag is placed on a triangular basement, at each of the angles of which are conical chambers, communicating by a subterranean corridor. The Nurhag Oës is separated from the former by a rivulet. The principal cone is flanked on the E. and S. sides by three smaller ones connected with it, by a kind of terrace, giving to the whole the look of a medieval stronghold.

5 m from Torralba is the Cantoniera di Giave, on the height above which, on the 1. is the village of Giave, built on the edge of an extinct volcanic crater, which is well preserved.

A mile beyond this the road crosses a rivulet, near to which is a hill of limestone pierced with several square apertures affording access to caverns divided into regular chambers, which may have served both as dwellings and places of sepulture. This series of grottoes continues for a considerable distance, as may be seen from the high road as far as Bonorva, and in the same almost horizontal bed of limestone.

They are called in the country Domus de Gianas, and, according to the local tradition, served as places of refuge to the primitive Christians of the island. Several similar grottoes extend in the direction of Padora (the ancient Gurulis Vetus), 10 m. W. of Giave, where Phœnician and Roman coins and idols have been discovered, as well as some Cyclopean or polygonal constructions. Six miles beyond the Cantoniera di Giave is that of Bonorva, where, contrary to the general rule, the traveller may find a not over-clean bed.

Bonorva, a good-sized town, for this country, of 5000 Inhab., and about a mile from the high road on the 1. The population, which is entirely pastoral and agricultural, has preser more than elsewhere the old quarrelsome character of the Sardes. The church, built in 1612, has nothing remarkable. The climate is cold in winter, although it is scarcely 1500 ft. the spiral staircase which communicates above the sea, in consequence of the table-land which overlooks it on the S. preventing the influence of the winds from that quarter. Snow sometimes falls here in great abundance, and as late as the month of March.

Beyond the Cantoniera of Bonorva the road commences ascending to the plateau or high plain of La Campeda, 2145 ft. above the sea, which separates the waters flowing into the gulf of Asinara on the N. and to the river Tirso on the S. The view from the chapel of San Simeone is very extensive over the plains and mountains at the N. extremity of the island. Near this chapel, are the remains of two square towers of polygonal masonry, and some ruins of habitations.

The pass across the Campeda during the winter is often blocked up with snow, so as to detain the diligence for three and four days at a time at Bonorva or Macomer. The plateau was in bygone times covered with a dense forest, which is gradually disappearing, the wood being transported to Bosa to be shipped to Genoa for the use of the navy.

Towards the centre of the plateau on the 1. of the Cantonierade la Campeda, in that part of the forest called La Selva di Sauccu, have been discovered some sepulchral monuments, now deposited in the house of Count Pinna at Macomer: the origin of these monuments is still undecided. At the bridge of Perda Manna is a Roman milestone in situ, the present road appearing to follow exactly the line of the ancient one.

The S. escarpment of the plateau of La Campeda commences at Monte Muradu; beyond which the road to Bosa on the sea-coast branches off to the rt.; and after a descent of hour, and at 9 m. from Bonorva, we arrive at

Macomer, a village of 2000 Inhab., on the site of the Macopsisa of Ptolemy, offering some traces of its Roman origin. Before the church are 3 ancient milestones discovered in the neighbourhood, two of the reign of Vespasian, marking the LV. and LVI. miles from Turris, and the third of that of Sept. Severus, also marking the LVI. m. Until the opening the new road Macomer was a place little importance; its central position, near the junction of the new lines of communication to Nuoro and Bosa with great central route of the island, is now likely to add much to its prosperity.

Situated on the declivity from the plateau La Campeda, Macomer overlooks the valley of the Tirso, and towards the S.W. the plains of Oristano, whilst it commands on the E.S.E. the high peaks Gennargentu. Although 1890 ft. above sea, the air at Macomer is unhealthy during the summer. In no part of Sardinia do we see a greater number of Nurhags than about this place; that of Santa Barbara, about a mile N. of the town, and near the high road, is well worth a visit, from its good state of preservation. It is remarkable for its almost quadrilateral form, and for the four smaller cones by which it is surrounded.

Another locality, about 5 m. of Macomer, is interesting for its ruins of a still more problematical origin than the Nurhags: these are called Tamuli-probably a corruption of Tumuli (?). At the base of a Nurhag well preserved, in which were discovered some curious idols, supposed by La Marmora to be Phœnician, are placed six conical stones, each 44 ft. high, three of which have sculptured upon them representations of the breasts of a female. They appear to belong to one of those monuments which the Sards call Giants’ Tombs (see p. 51). About 100 yds. farther is another of these Sepolturas de is Gigantes, in the midst of the underwood.

THE ROUTES

I.3.

MACOMER – Abbasanta – Paulilatino – Bauladu – ORISTANO

Leaving Macomer, the road descends nearly 600 ft. in a southerly direction, leaving on the 1. that to Silanus and Nuoro; at the 3rd mile is the chapel of San Lussorio, and the ruined Nurhag Imberti on the l., near the village of Borore, with a Sepoltura de is Gigantes still better preserved than those of Tamuli. A similar enclosure called Perda di San Baingiu exists 2 m. to the N.E. of the church of S. Baingiu, and a third, La Perda di S. Altare, in the same neighbourhood.

The mountains seen on the rt. are the volcanic group of Santu Lussurgiu, Monte Ferru, and Cuglieri. 3 m. beyond San Lussorio is the Cantoniera de Ponte Marquis, from which the traveller may visit to the 1. la Regia Tanca, or horse-rearing establishment of the Kings of Aragon, surrounded by dwarfish cork-oaks. The vegetation from here commences to assume a more southern aspect.

The road rejoins the grand route at Abba Santa; 3 m, beyond which, on the rt., is the Nurhag Losa, the spiral passage in which is well preserved. 1 m. further on is

Paulilatino (Pauli from Palus), containing 2700 Inhab.; which derives its name from a marsh which stood close -by, drained about a century ago. There are several monuments similar to those of Macomer and Borore in the vicinity; for instance, on the monticule of Goronna. About 1 m. W. of the town is a Nurhag with a Giant’s Tomb; at a little distance farther, at Perdu Pes, are several of the latter with three conical columns, but, instead of women’s breasts upon them as at Tamuli, they have three and six elliptical cavities, which penetrate to the axes of the cones.

From Paulilatino the road descends into a valley, which it follows for 8 m., in which the vegetation is most luxuriant: the hills on either side have each its Nurhag perched upon it.

Bauladu, a small village where the road debouches from the latter valley into the Campidano Maggiore, where the heat in summer is excessive. Here we leave the hilly region to enter on the most fertile and civilized part of all Sardinia. As we approach Oristano the village-steeples are seen in greater numbers; the fields, better cultivated, are surrounded by hedges of gigantic cactuses; and after passing through a grove of olive-trees and palms, we reach at 9 m. from Bauladu the insulated ch. of Nostra Signora del Rimedio, a great resort for pilgrims of the province of Oristano. The Tirso is soon afterwards crossed. This river, which rises in the granitic mountains of Buddusò, has a course of 70 m. before it reaches the sea, and is consequently the longest river in the island. The construction of the bridge over it is attributed to the devil by the lower orders. 1 m. from N. S. del Rimedio we arrive at

ORISTANO, founded in 1070 by the inhabitants of Tharros (too exposed to the incursions of the Barbary pirates), and always one of the most important cities in the island; it is the chief town of the province, and the seat of an archbishop.

It has, however, the desolate look of a place ravaged by a pestilence; the old walls flanked by towers, the palace of the ancient judges of Arborea, the houses with balconies surrounded by iron railings bearing the arms of the Aragonese nobles who once inhabited them, are sadly out of keeping with the present abandoned look of the place. This can only be explained by supposing that the salt-marshes which surround the town have increased in extent, and that the waters of the Tirso were not allowed to overflow in the 11th centy as at present, or certainly its founders would not have chosen such an unfavourable position as Oristano occupies.

There is no inn here, if we except a dirty lodging-house near the diligence-office. There is a café in the town, where the amaretti, for which Oristano is celebrated, may be procured. The bread of Oristano is considered the best in Sardinia.

The cathedral, which is of recent date, has some fair pictures of a Sardinian artist, Marghinotti, still living. Avoid visiting the prison in the Torre di Mare, a frightful specimen of what the lock-ups of the 18th century were under the worst system. Some pottery is manufactured here; it may be added that a good many ancient vases are discovered in the tombs about Tharros.

The costume of the inhabitants has changed here from what we have seen in the northern part of the island; the capote, instead of black, is brown, and a hat covered with oil-cloth, and with a wide brim, distinguishes the man of the South from those of the Capo Settentrionale.

The females wear an ample scarf or handkerchief, which reaches to the ground, bound round the face so as to allow only the eyes to be seen; it has some resemblance to the Spanish mantilla, which the Andalusians about Tarifa wear; under this handkerchief is a red petticoat; most of the females go barefooted. The interior of Oristano has little to interest the traveller; it is quite different as regards the environs: several excursions may be made to them, amongst which the most interesting will be to Milis and the Monte Ferru; to Cabras and the ruins of Tharros.

The first of these excursions will occupy 2 days, but more advantageously 3; the first 8 miles may be performed in a carriage, as far as the village of Tramazza, on the Strada Central, from which a road of 3 m. runs across a country producing corn when in cultivation (for it is often in fallow), having before us the Monte Ferru, the slopes of which are covered with orange-trees.

After passing the chapel of St. Paulo the village of Milis is reached, in the centre of which is the magnificent villa of Marquis Boyl, which contrasts strangely with the miserable aspect of the surrounding cottages. Milis contains 1600 Inhab.; the air is not of the best; the pea santry are employed in carrying oranges either into the interior, or to Oristano for shipment.

The forest of Milis is nearly 3 m. long, and 4 m. in breadth, divided into several properties, the two largest belonging to Marquis Boyl and to the Chapter of Oristano. The number of orange-trees bearing fruit is estimated at 300,000, each tree furnishing on an average 300 oranges annually; some of the trees are 6 ft. in circumference: the most magnificent, being one on Marquis Boyl’s property, bears an inscription in honour of the late king of Sardinia’s visit to the forest in May, 1829.

Neither the orange-groves of Hyeres nor of Portugal can convey any idea of these plantations: here there is no appearance of cultivation; the ground beneath is covered with luxuriant grass, the dark green of which contrasts singularly with the gold-coloured fruit and white flowers strewed upon it from the trees above. Man really here appears only called to gather the fruit so liberally bestowed by d by nature.

From Milis, by a very indifferent road, the tourist can continue to Bonarcado, a pleasant village on the declivities of Monte Ferru, and from thence through a deep and savage ravine to Santu Lussurgiu. This village, of 4800 Inhab., 1600 ft. above the sea, and 4 hrs. distant from Milis, is situated at the bottom of a volcanic crater, the N. lip of which forms a kind of amphitheatre surrounding it, the highest point of which is Monte Urticu (3440 ft. above the sea). The best place from which to observe this curious district will be the smallch. of S. Giuseppe, on a rising to the E. of the town.

The road to Cuglieri rises over the wall of the crater, through a forest of chesnut-trees, not unlike those on the declivities of Etna, passing near the highest point of the ridge, the Monte Urticu, descending from thence towards the N.W. through a forest of secular oaks and ilexes, the ground beneath covered with peonies (Pœonia corallina, Dec.). These forests abound in deer and wild boars, and the hunting parties which assemble in them at Easter are amongst the most frequented in Sardinia.

Near the foot of the descent is the ancient castle of Monte Ferru, which dates from 1160; close to it is a cavern called La Spelonca di Nonna, consisting of several chambers artificially excavated in the volcanic tufa, round which are cells which appear to have served for places of sepulture.

CUGLIERI, a town of 4200 souls, 4 hrs. distant from Santu Lussurgiu, supposed to occupy the site of the ancient Gurulis Nova, offers some traces of Roman edifices; it is the chief town of the province, which it owes in a great degree to its healthy situation. The view from before the principal ch. is very extensive over the plain of Bosa (La Planargia), and the whole line of coast from Cape Marargiu to Cape Mannu: in the spring the panorama is particularly en livened by the numerous boats employed in the coral fishery in the offing.

An excellent carriage-road leads from Cuglieri to the chapel of Santa Caterina Pittinnuri (8 m.), a place of great veneration among the people of the country around. At a short way S. of Santa Caterina is the site of the Roman town of Cornus; and of the arx of which there are traces on a hill near sea-shore; among these ruins have been frequently discovered Roman inscriptions, vases of an elegant form, with Phœnician medals and bronzes. At short distance from the ruins of this citadel, and towards the E., are an abandoned iron-mine and some traces ancient furnaces. From here we follow during 5 m. the western base of Monte Ferru, to reach the Campidano of Milis and, passing by the rich though unhealthy villages of Riola, Nurache, and Solanas, return to Oristano by the Madonna del Rimedio.

The excursion to the ruins of Tharros will occupy a long day from Oristano; passing by the Madonna del Rimedio

to Cabras (4 m.), a neat village of 3720 inhab, on the salt lake of Mar e Pontis. Cabras is celebrated for the beauty of its inhabitants, contrasting with the insalubrity of its climate; it would be difficult to imagine anything more beautiful and elegant than the young girls of Cabras when collected together during the village festival at the national dance of the Ballo Tondo; the fishermen of the neighbouring coast might serve at the same time as the finest models for the artist. It is a singular circumstance that, with a climate so pestilential at times, and which the inhabitants of the vicinity, but living away from the sea, consider so dangerous as to avoid remaining in it for a night, there are persons of more than 100 years of age among its population: these even are not rare.

The situation of Cabras, in the delta of the Tirso, forming marshes in summer, explains this unfavourable sanitary state, and which it would not be difficult to remedy, were it not that it would interfere with the extensive fisheries. It is right to observe, that, with this great appearance of robust health amongst the adult population, the di mortality at an early age is excessive.

The streets of Cabras are straight and wide, the houses generally of one story, to which that of the former feudal lord, the Marquis Arcais, is not an exception; the only visible difference between the dwellings of the different classes being, that those of the proprietors (principales) and clergy have glass windows, a privilege which has been often resented by the lower orders by smashing those of persons whom they considered no better than themselves.

The parish ch. is dedicated to the Madonna dell’Assunta: near it is a ruin of a castle of the judges of Arborea, and from this cause called the Palace of Eleonora, the name of that extraordinary woman, the Giudichessa Arborea, who granted to her subjects the CARTA DI LOGU, the MAGNA CHARTA of the Sardes in the middle ages.

The country round Cabras is covered with plantations of gigantic olive-trees, in the midst of which some date-palms give to it an oriental aspect. The fishery of the salt lakes was sold of late years for 48,000%. sterling, and is likely to be carried on upon a much more extensive scale, in consequence of the facility offered by steamboats for sending the produce, especially during the winter, to the towns on the continent. The fish the most abundant are the grey mullet (muggini); the fishery is carried on by means of canals leading from the sea, through which the fish are allowed to enter the lakes, in which sundry chambers constructed of canes are set up, in which they collect, and from which they are driven into a remote one, called the Camera della Morte, where the fishermen enter naked, seize the fish, and despatch them by striking them on the head.

The tourist can arrive from Oristano as far as Cabras in a carriage, but beyond it he must travel on horseback, following the shore, and crossing several of the canals which communicate between the salt lake and the sea; the N.W. extremity of the bay is shut in by a narrow promontory, the Capo di San Marco, at the foot of which is an ancient insulated church, which alone marks the site of the city of Tharros, the residence of the judges of Arborea until the 11th centy. This church is still an abbey, under the denomination of San Giovanni di Sinis, Sinis being the name of the strip of land between the Laguna of Mare Pontis and the sea.

The excursion from Cabras to S. Giovanni will require 2 hours. During his walk the tourist maу be numerous red flamingoes on the salt lake and the gulf. The ch. of San Giovanni has nothing of interest, except its deserted appearance, in the midst of sand-hills, which have covered entirely the ruins of the ancient city; crossing them in a southerly direction to a tower, we arrive at the Necropolis, which extends to the sea-shore; it is here that sepulchres excavated in the limestone rock are frequently discovered, containing, alongside the human skeletons, gold rings, ear-rings, and necklaces, large glass vessels of Etruscan forms, scarabæi, Egyptian amulets, &c. Specimens of these antiquities may be purchased at Cabras, the inhabitants considering the site as the property of their village; strangers can easily undertake excavations themselves, under the protection of some influential person of that town.

On the promontory of Sinis are more than twenty Nurhags, all placed upon commanding eminences; the southern point of the promontory is frequented by a peculiar species of falcon, the Falco Eleonore, so called by General de La Marmora, in honour of the Legislatrix, who in the Carta di Logu forbade to disturb its nests, under pain of imprisonment and fine.

The Hot Springs of Fordongianus deserve also to be visited; this will occupy a day from Oristano: following the 1. bank of the Tirso, through a country well cultivated with vines, olive-trees, and cactuses, the villages of Sili, Simaxis, Ollastra, San Vero Congius, and Villanova di Truschedu, are successively passed through. An ascent brings us to the arid hill of Balargianus, which commands a fine view over the plain of the Tirso, and the Monte Ghirghini on the S., the rendezvous of the sportsmen of Oristano.

Descending from here through an underwood of arbutus, myrtles, and lentiscus, we reach the village of Fordongianus, the ancient Forum Trajani, where there still exist remains of a fine Roman bridge over the Tirso, and considerable ruins of baths surround the now abandoned thermal springs, the persons who now resort to them being obliged to build for themselves huts of canes to protect them from cold and sun. The temperature of the sources is 155° Fahr.; they contain sulphates of soda, lime, and magnesia. There are now 1045 Inhab. in this village, their poor cottages surrounded by plantations of magnificent pomegranate-trees.

A modern, though already half-ruined bridge over the Tirso communicates by a road with Paulilatino. The air of Fordongianus is insalubrious in summer. Among the ruins of the Forum Trajani are an aqueduct, traces of a Roman road, three milestones (recently removed to the museum at Cagliari); there are also remains of a wall built during the middle ages, as a protection against the mountaineers of La Barbagia.

THE ROUTES

I.4

ORISTANO – Uras – Sardara – Sanluri – Serrenti – Monastir – CAGLIARI

Leaving Oristano, the Strada Centrale proceeds in a S.S.E. direction, leaving on the rt. the salt lakes of S. Giusta and Sassu, as far as Uras, and afterwards, through a depression between the mountains of Linas on the rt. and Monte Arci on the 1. 15 m. from Oristano is Uras, a village of 2050 Inhab., in the middle of an extensive plain, the richest corn district in the island. Uras is celebrated for the victory gained a son of the King of Aragon, over Brancaleone Doria, the husband of the Giudichessa Eleonora of Arborea, 4 m. S.W. of Sanluri, in the district in 1470 by the Marquis of Oristano over the Spanish Viceroy.

8 m. N.E. of Uras is Ales, at the foot of the Monte Arci (1120 Inhab.), a bishop’s see, with a cathedral built in 1636, on the plan of the ch. of Santa Maria di Carignano at Genoa.

The tract between the volcanic peak of Arci and the basaltic plateau of La Giara (see p. 87) is called Marmilla, one of the most fertile parts of Sardinia; in the centre of it stands Ales.

Sardara, 8 m. from Uras, with 2340 Inhab., on the lower declivity of the Monte Melas, and in the vicinity of some thermal springs known to the Romans as the Aqua Neapolitana; they rise at a temperature of 140° Fahr., and contain carbonic acid and sulphuretted hydrogen gases, with sulphates of soda and magnesia in solution. The bathers resort to certain grottoes in the vicinity, or have the waters carried to the lage.

The castle of Monreale, a residence of the Judges of Arborea, to the S. of the springs, is one of the best preserved mediæval monuments in the island. Like most of the villages of the Campidano, Campidano,

Sardara has a kind of inn, where the traveller may procure wine and other refreshments, and even a bed, such as it is. Great quantities of saffron are cultivated about Sardara, as well as in the environs of

Sanluri, 6 m. farther on, a large village of 3930 Inhab., with a ruined castle and some churches. We would advise the traveller to visit one of the houses of the farmers at Sanluri, or in some other village of the Campidano: the disposition is throughout the same, A mill turned by a pony in a corner of the dwelling forms a constant appendage to the establishment.

There is a peculiar breed of fowls at Sanluri, remarkable for their size; they are said to have been introduced from Africa. The women here wear a most picturesque costume, not unlike that of the females of the Campagna of Rome.

This place is also celebrated in the history of Sardinia, for a victory gained in 1409, by of San Gavino, is the agricultural establishment of Vittorio Emanuele, granted in 1838 to a French company, who engaged to drain the marsh of Sanluri, and to restore the land thus reclaimed to cultivation; this association had at first to contend with many difficulties, and especially against the deleterious nature of the climate, further increased by the increasing mephitic exhalations, prior to their complete desiccation. The labourers employed were Sardes only, who could resist the effects of malaria. The operation proved an unsuccessful speculation. The property now belongs to the Marquis Pallavicini, a Genoese millionaire.

4 m. beyond Sanluri, after crossviling the river Mara, is the Cantoniera of Perda Lunga (long stone), a name given in other parts of the country to a kind of Celtic Menhirs. The stone of this locality, in the form of a rude obelisk, however, is the natural termination of a basaltic dyke, from round which the volcanic tufa has been washed away. 2 m. farther on is Serrenti, on the side of a lake drained of late years. 4 m. beyond Serrenti is Nuraminis; and 4 m. farther, at the foot of some volcanic hills, Monastir, so called from a neighbouring monastery of Camaldolese monks. Monastir is a flourishing village near the bifurcation of the high road to Nuoro, and near the banks of the Mannu and Flumineddu torrents, which are crossed by good bridges.

The 13 m. which intervene between Monastir and Cagliari are over a gently undulating plain, now very fertile and well cultivated. As we approach the capital we pass houses in the midst of enclosures surrounded by cactus hedges. After leaving on the rt. the Salt Lake, or the Stagno, and the road to Iglesias, we enter Cagliari by the suburb of Santa Tenera, and the Contrada di Yenne, in which is situated the diligence office, and where the vetturini stop: indeed the drivers will positively refuse to go farther, on account of the hilly nature of the streets in the upper town. Travellers, if going there, must procure a cart drawn by oxen, which costs 3 livres, to transport their luggage; or porters, each of whom will scarcely be satisfied with 1 franc for carrying a trunk or a bag.

THE ROUTES

CAGLIARI (the Karalis of the Romans).

Inns: There are two very tolerable inns, both in the quarter of La Marina: they may not look over-inviting to persons coming from the hotels at Genoa; whereas the traveller who has arrived from Porto Torres will find them tolerably comfortable. The price of bedrooms varies from 1 to 3 livres; dinner 2 to 3; breakfast of meat and coffee, 2 francs.

There is another inn at the entrance of Villa Nuova; and travellers who intend to prolong their stay may obtain furnished rooms at the bathing establishment on the promenade.

The steamers arrive from Genoa every Thursday and Sunday morning, and return on the Thursday and Monday. Another sails for Tunis on the Sunday, arriving at Cagliari from Genoa on the same day. Fares to and from Genoa 70 and 45, and from Cagliari to Tunis 45 and 30 francs. There is also a line of steamers for the island of La Maddalena every Thursday evening, calling at Muravera, Tortolì, Orosei, Siniscola, and Terranova. Other lines of steamers leave Cagliari for Naples the 6th of each month, in 20 hrs.; and for Palermo, on every second Thursday, at 6 p.m., employing 24 hrs.

Cagliari contains 30,960 Inhab. Although not to be compared to many of the large towns on the Mediterranean, it is remarkable for its fine position, the pureness of its atmosphere, the extent of its gulf, and the colour of the rocks on which the upper town is built-all which produce a pleasing effect on the traveller who has even visited Naples, Lisbon, or Constantinople, especially when seen from the E. in the direction of Bonaria.

The precipitous rock upon which is situated the quarter of the Castle presents about halfway up a green zone, the site of the public promenade; at the base is the quarter of Villanova, surrounded by the palm-trees of S. Lucifero.

The interior of the town has much more of a Spanish than an Italian aspect, and the faces, and especially the eyes of the females, add to this illusion.

The city is divided into four quarters, each of which has its peculiar characteristics.

That of the Castle (Casteddu) occupies the top of the hill, rising 300 ft. above the sea: it is surrounded by its well-preserve well-preserved walls, built by the Pisans, and contains the palaces of the Viceroy and Archbishop, and of the principal families of the island, who reside at Cagliari; two of the most remarkable are, the P. Boyl and P. Villa Marina.

This quarter communicates with the others by means of four gates; those of the Elefante and San Pancrazio are defended by towers, each bearing a long inscription relative to their erection by the Pisans in 1305 and 1307.

The quarter of Stampace extends from the first of these gates to the Campidano on the N.: it is the seat of the mercantile and industrial part of the population; there are some good shops here, those of the jewellers in particular, for the supply of the rich ornaments worn by the females of the S. part of the island.

The quarter of La Marina is that of the maritime trade and population, and of the consular and custom-house offices.

Finally that of Villanova, on the E. of the Castle-hill, is chiefly inhabited by the agriculturists of the rich plain that extends in the direction of Quartu and Pirri.

The streets of the quarter of the Castle are narrow and tortuous; those of La Marina and Villanova wider, but execrably paved, and sometimes not at all.

The Piazza di S. Carlo, at the extremity of the Strada di Yenne, is not remarkable; the Strada di San Michele, parallel to the latter, is the finest in the town, and where the races (Pareggie) take place these races are peculiar, consisting of a line of 3 to 6 mounted men, who run at full speed from one end to the other, holding each other’s arms, the great effort being to arrive together, still holding to each other.

The ancient Pisan and Aragonese bastions have been converted into boulevards or promenades. The view from that of St. Catherine, over the Port, Gulf, and Salt Lakes, and towards Capes Carbonara and Pula, is very fine. Other public walks have been recently laid out to the E. of Porta di San Pancrazio, following the declivity of the Castle hill, on which has been placed a Roman statue, converted into La Giudichessa Eleonora, holding in her hand the Carta di Logu.

The Cathedral, dedicated to St. Cecilia, is a vast irregular edifice, begun a in 1312 by the Pisans, and completed in 1331 by the Aragonese kings: it was restored in the 17th century: the high altar is of massive silver, with statuettes of the same, in good taste: at the foot of the stairs leading to it are two lions crushing serpents, which support the balustrade-a species of allegory very general throughout the Sardinian churches.

The ancient ambones have been removed to near the principal entrance. The pictures are in general copies of the school of the Caraccis. A silver dish, with sculptures of the Triumph of Galatea, in the sacristy, is attributed to Benvenuto Cellini.

In one of the chapels is the huge monument of Martino King of Sicily, the victor at Sanluri (see p. 71); he was the son of Martino King of Aragon, and was carried off by a fever a few days after his victory; his remains were subsequently removed to Poblet in Catalonia.

Beneath the high altar is a crypt, divided into 3 chapels; that of St. Lucifer contains the tomb of the wife of Louis XVIII. of France, a Princess of Savoy, who died in England in 1810; and that of St. Saturninus, of he only son of the Duke d’Aosta, after wards Victor Emmanuel I., by whose death the crown devolved to the reigning branch of Savoy Carignan; in the niches are placed various relics of saints and martyrs. Some Pagan bas-reliefs are quite out of place in this sanctum sanctorum.

Amongst the other churches of Cagliari, the most worthy of notice are Francesco, near the Piazza S. Carlo, erected in 1774, with a remarkable façade, and some ancient paintings of the 14th centy. Santa Anna, in the Strada San Michele, with a statue of S. Amedeus of Savoy, by Galassi, a Sardinian artist, and a picture of the Holy Sacrament by Marghinotti. San Michele, formerly belonging to the Jesuits, in the usual highly decorated style of the churches of that order; in the sacristy is a picture of Adam and Eve, the school of Guido, which have had Sardinian costume given to their naked figures from motives of false delicacy.

La Madonna del Carmine, with some paintings of the Umbrian school on panel. Into the walls of the ch. of Sant’Efisio have been built the cannonballs fired against the town by the French in 1793, in their unsuccessful attack on it, under Admiral Truguet and Latouche Treville. An adjoining reservoir of Roman construction is shown as the prison of the saint before his martyrdom at Pula. On the 1st of every May the statue of Sant’Efisio is carried to the place of his decapitation in a carriage only used upon that occasion.

The civil hospital requires much amelioration: a new one will soon be completed near the promenade called Buon Cammino.

There are two educational establishments at Cagliari for orphans that for the girls in the former college of the nobles; for the boys at S. Lucifero, at the foot of Monreale, near which is the new cemetery, surrounded by gardens, in which may be seen the finest date-palms in all Sardinia. The Lazzaretto, about 14 m, out of the town, towards Cape S. Elia, has a lofty tower, the signal station for vessels arriving at Cagliari.

The palace inhabited by the royal family during the first 14 years of the present century, and formerly the residence of the Viceroys, is now that of the military commandant of the island; it is a vast building, having the residence of the archbishop on one side and a convent on the other.

The Palazzo Municipale, alongside the cathedral, has on its façade a long inscription commemorative of the visit of Charles V. on his expedition to Tunis, in 1535; in one of the halls is a large modern picture by Marghinotti, in honour of King Charles Felix.

There is a pretty good theatre between the Castello and Stampace, which is generally well attended; a Casino or club in the Palazzo Villamarina; the rooms are large; balls are given here during winter. Throughout the town are several cafés, where the Italian and French newspapers are taken in; the best is one near the Bastion of Santa Caterina.

The University is in a fine building, well adapted for the purpose, founded in 1596 by Philip III. of Spain, and reorganised in 1764 by King Charles Emmanuel; it has at present 26 professors and about 200 students.

The Museums of Antiquities and Natural History occupy a considerable portion of the building. The first contains the greater part of the statues, inscriptions, medals, coins, vases, intaglios, arms, &c., of Roman and Phœnician origin, which have been discovered in Sardinia, and especially of those small idols so peculiar to Sardinia, of which there are upwards of 500, and of subjects discovered in the tombs of the ancient Tharros. The collections of natural history are particularly interesting for the series of rocks and fossils of the island made by General La Marmora.

The Library contains 19,000 volumes; one part of it is dedicated to the works on the island, of which there is a good catalogue by Sig. Martini; the other books are principally on jurisprudence and theology: among the MSS. is a curious incomplete copy of the Divina Commedia, and several of local interest, the most remarkable being the collection of diplomas of the Judges of Arborea (Codici Cartacei d’Arborea), full of interest for the history of Sardinis in the middle ages.

The Port of Cagliari, although small, is quite sufficient for the trade of the place; situated at the extremity of the roadstead, it is protected by Cape St. Elia towards the S.E. In the middle ages vessels could still enter into the Salt Lakes W. of the town, as we know the galleys did in 1296, during the siege of Santa Gilla, a place now 1 m. from the sea.

This Laguna, or Stagno di Cagliari, 18 or 20 m. in circumference, is separated from the sea by a narrow strip of land, 6 m. long, called la Plaia, through which have been cut numerous canals, to admit the fish, as at Cabras; it is covered during winter with water-fowl, especially with flamingoes, which arrive from Africa to pass the cold season; with wild swans, geese, ducks, and other aquatic birds from the north, which furnish abundant shooting to the sportsman.

These shooting parties during the winter months are very picturesque, numerous boats filled with ladies taking part in them, and adding much to the vivacity of the scene. The value of the fishery is estimated at 150,000 livres; it consists chiefly of eels and grey mullet (muggini). To the E. of Cagliari are 2 similar lakes, the Stagno di Molentargiu, and the Mare Stagno, and which, although not communicating with the sea, except when it blows hard from the S., are equally salt. Extensive evaporating pools have been established on the banks of both these Stagni, from which large quantities of salt are procured by natural evaporation.

Cagliari has hitherto remained free from malaria; its elevated situation at the extremity of the great depression of the Campidano, through which blow the strong N.W. winds (maestrale), appears to preserve it from this infliction, which one might expect to exist, surrounded as it is by salt lakes and marshes. When the N.W. wind does not blow, a slight southerly breeze sets in every morning about 10 o’clock, known by the name of Imbattu, and which during the summer renders the heat supportable, although the latter sometimes reaches 104° Fahr., and drives the miasmata before it.

The air of Bonaria, almost a suburb of Cagliari, has of late years become tainted, which has been attributed to a pier erected for embarking the salt. The water of the springs at Cagliari is strongly impregnated with salts of lime and magnesia, so that the inhabitants generally drink only that collected in cisterns from the rain. On the whole the water is indifferent, and ships are obliged to send for it to Pula, 16 m. off. During the time of the Romans it was brought here from the mountains of Domusnovas, 25 m. distant, by means of an aqueduct; of late it has been proposed to convey water from Sinnai, a place 8 m. to the N.E.

The costume of the inhabitants of Cagliari differs little, except as to colour, from that of the other parts of the island. The accessories are richer; the collettu is replaced by a kind of juste au corps, in gaudy colours.

The rigattieri (clothesdealers) are remarkable for the richness of their dress on feast-days, wearing a kind of blue jacket, the sleeves embroidered with white, ornamented with large silver buttons; under this is a scarlet cloth waistcoat: the white trousers scarcely reach to the knees, below which are the universal black gaiters of the Sardes; a red cap, instead of the Turkish fez, covers the head.

The fishermen wear red trousers, a blue jacket, and a red cap.

The females display a still greater amount of elegance and finery in their dress than the men, by the number of gold and silver buttons, pins, &c., with which they decorate every part of it.

Cagliari is situated very nearly on the site of Karalis, a Roman Municipium, many remains of which may still be seen the principal being the amphitheatre excavated in the limestone rock below the promenade of Buon Cammino, the seats of which are partly preserved; its dimensions are nearly 153 ft. by 98 in the two diameters. Of the ancient burying-places several are still visible; one, at the entrance of the suburb of Santa Tenera, is called the Sa Grutta de sa Pibera (Grotto of the Viper), from the serpents sculptured over the entrance; it has suffered by the cuttings for the new road, which passes close by. In it are several inscriptions in Greek and Latin, which have been published by Muratori and La Marmora. A number of similar grottoes, but less decorated, exist on the limestone cliffs near the Grutta de sa Pibera [Grotta della Vipera], as well as on the hill of Monreale. Remains of an aqueduct built of brick, stamped with Roman names, have also been discovered near the town.

The hills which surround the city between the N.E. and E. are capped with mediæval castles, which add greatly to the beauty of the landscape; the greater number in ruins. Beyond these hills extends the plain called Il Campidano di Cagliari, covered with populous villages, each of which will furnish an agreeable object of promenade to the stranger. They may be all reached in a carriage, if such a convenience can be procured, for in 1854 there was only one person in the capital who kept such vehicles for hire, and in fine weather they were not easy to be had even at exorbitant prices. An omnibus goes daily to Quartu, the most important of the villages of the Campidano of Cagliari, which contains 6300 Inhab.

The traveller who may be at Cagliari in May ought to visit the towns of the Campidano during their feast-days, to form some idea of the richness and beauty of the costumes of the peasantry. These feasts consist, amongst other ceremonies, of a long procession of oxen yoked two and two, their horns decorated with bouquets of flowers; next come the different village confraternities, followed by the statue of the patron saint of the locality, preceded by his banner carried by a cavalier, his face turned towards the statue, and whose horse walks backwards, not to fail in respect to the divinity.

The procession ended, races follow, the horses mounted by boys from 10 to 12 years of age, without bridle or stirrups. At all hours of the day groups may be seen dancing the ballo tondo under the trees. It is here that the young women of the Campidano may be seen in all their beauty and splendour of costume, which generally consists of a juste au corps of satiu, embroidered with gold and silver, open in front, the sleeves with rich gold lace, and a quantity of gold and silver buttons; over this juste au corps is a black velvet vest with embroidered pockets, bound round by a wide belt of gold lace; the petticoat is scarlet, with an apron of white satin: a gold necklace, with an abundance of gold chains and of rings on every finger, complete this picturesque and rich toilette. It is remarkable that such meetings never give rise to disorder, the only objects of refreshment being oranges and torronis (a sort of almond-cake). A game which may be witnessed at the fêtes of Quartu and Selargius is the Tirai di pei, or a kicking-match, more curious than agreeable to witness.

THE ROUTES

EXCURSION TO ORRI AND PULA

 This excursion will require a day. Pula is about 20 m. from Cagliari: The best mode of making it will be on horseback.

Following the narrow slip of la Plaia that separates the Stagno or Salt Lake from the sea, we arrive at Orri, 9 m., a domain of the Marquis of Villa Hermosa, created by the father of the present possessor out of a desert waste, which he succeeded in converting into a real model farm, where the plantations of vines, olive, almond, and mulberry trees have succeeded in perfection. The garden, extending from the Marquis’s villa to the shore, contains a fine collection of exotic plants. Following the coastline, 11 m. from Orri is Pula, surrounded by extensive plantations of orange, olive, and cherry trees, with some date-palms. ‘The climate is not very healthy, but of late years the intemperie has been diminished by improved drainage; e; Lord Nelson has given his testimony to the salubrity of Pula in one of his letters addressed to Consul Magnon: -“I can assure you that we have found Pula the most healthy place the fleet has ever been in; so far from a man being ill, of the thousands who went on shore, they have all derived the greatest benefit from the salubrity of the air.” 1 m. from the town, on the Capo di Pula, is the ch. of S. Efisio, on the spot where Ephisius, a general of Diocletian, suffered martyrdom, and marks the site of the city of Nora.

The road to it from Pula passes near a ruined Nurhag, upon which rises an aqueduct which carried water to the Roman town, an interesting superposition in an archæological point of view. On each side of the promontory are traces of quays and of a pier with some coarse mosaics. Several Roman fragments may be seen in the walls of the ch.; but the most curious ruin is that called La Leoniera, a small theatre: the seats are nearly perfect, but only the foundations of the proscenium remain. Several of the Roman inscriptions in the Museum of Cagliari were discovered here, as well as the two Phœnician ones, perhaps the greatest curiosities in that collection. Glass vessels of elegant forms, similar to those of Tharros, are also found from time to time amongst the ruins of Nora.

Pula during the war was often the rendezvous of the British fleet, and, being one of the best places for procuring water in large quantities in the Mediterranean, is still resorted to by ships of war.

ROUTE II.

FROM SASSARI TO ΤΕΜΡIO AND PALAU

This route must be performed on horseback: the first part, as far as Tempio, will be a long day’s journey.

Leaving Sassari, we follow the road to Osilo, leaving the latter on the rt. to descend into the ravine of Maniscalco, and after a ride of 3 hrs. to reach the village of Nulvi, containing 2800 Inhab., the principal town of the district of Anglona.

In the environs are several Nurhags, amongst which that of Alou is remarkable in having one of its sides perfectly vertical, an unique instance in these curious edifices, which, as already stated, are more or less inclined. Close to it is the Sepoltura de su Paladino, an ordinary Giant’s Tomb. Some miles N. of Nulvi, on the road to Castelsardo, is the village of Sedini, notorious for the wild and vindictive character of its inhabitants. Between Nulvi and Martis the road passes along the Monte Orsa Manna, on the sides of which are several sepulchral grottoes.

From Martis, a village of 1000 souls, the road descends among wild olive and cork-oak trees to the Coghinas river, which is crossed at Scaffa by a ferry-boat. Should the tourist be not pressed for time in arriving at Tempio, there is a much more agreeable road to Scaffa by Castelsardo; from Sassari to Sorso, 2 hrs., a town of 4200 Inhab., surrounded by tobacco-plantations, and following from thence the coast for 4 hrs. to

Castelsardo, which, although ranking as a city and a bishopric, contains scarcely 1950 Inhab.

Situated on an insulated rock, it was founded by the Dorias in the 12th cent., when it was called Castel Genovese, and subsequently C. Aragonese, and C. Sardo when the island was ceded to the House of Savoy; it is now a poor dirty place, with narrow streets, and its port a small exposed iulet, from which there is some trade in the productions of the province of Gallura.

Beyond Castelsardo the road runs along the sea-shore, and afterwards along the marshy flat of the Cophints river, where there are some thermal springs frequented by the invalids of the province, but where there is no kind of accommodation for bathing or for the bathers.

Not far from these springs is Castel Doria, of the same period as Castel Sardo, now reduced to a picturesque mass of ruins surrounding a tower 100 ft. high.

From Castel Doria the road runs S. along the 1. bank of the Coghinas, crossing the Rio di Perfugas near their junction, and after 2 hrs. journey we reach La Scaffa, where we join the direct road to Tempio by Martis.]

The river Coghinas, the Termous of Ptolemy, the principal watercourse of N. Sardinia, is very liable to floods, which have destroyed all the bridges built over it in its whole course of 40 m.; indeed the ferry at Scaffa is the only safe mode of crossing it at present, although a good bridge is now in progress of construction (Dec. 1855), most of the fords being dangerous.

From the rt. bank the road to Tempio runs up a romantic ravine, covered with an underwood of arbutus, myrtles, &c., with scattered ilexes and cork-oaks, and which continue to near the gates of the town.

TEMPIO, a city of 9500 Inhab., capital of the province of Gallura, the seat of a bishop, and at an elevation of 1880 ft. above the sea. Its streets are wide, the houses low, and built of a grey granite.

The cathedral and other churches have little worthy of notice. N.E. of the town, on the road to Nuchis, is a Nurhag, so colossal as to be called Nuracu Majori.

Tempio, in former times, was celebrated for its manufacture of fire-arms, the gun-barrels being brought from Brescia; the muskets so made are 5 or 6 ft. long, resembling those carried by the Albaniaus, their price varying from 50 to 300 frs.

A manufactory of bottlecorks has been recently set up here, but the great proportion of the male population follows the calling of muleteers, Cavallanti and Viandanti, either as guides and attendants on travellers, or in carrying goods from place to place in the island; they pass for the strongest men in Sardinia, which they owe to the salubrity of the climate.

They resemble in many respects the Gallegos of Spain, of whom they possess the great muscular force and all the good qualities.

Tempio, although a city in name, has preserved all the characteristics of the town of a pastoral community.

The sheep-shearing is here the great event of the year, and brings about those assemblies or fêtes called Graminatorgiu or wool-pickings (from graminare, in Sarde, to pick), where all the females of the locality assemble, and, after having performed their task, end by entertainments, dancing, &e. The wool merely serves for making the coarse serges called furresi, which are manufactured by the different families; none is exported.

The Gallura is essentially a pastoral province, although of late years a certain extent of cultivated land may be seen about the houses of the shepherds (ovili), a progress towards a change of system for the better.

Tempio is at the N. foot. of the granitic chain of Monte Limbara, some of whose peaks rise to a height of 4000 ft. The Punta Balistreri will form an interesting excursion from the town; it may easily be made in a day. The view from the summit, embracing the mountainous region of N. Sardinia, is very extensive.

There is a kind of road between Tempio and the island of La Maddalena, crossing the plain of Gemini, a good deal frequented by Viandanti, smugglers, and pilgrims going to Monte Santo, the most celebrated Sanctuary in La Gallura, and said to contain relics of SS. Nicholas and Trano, but we would scarcely advise the tourist to give up the two days necessary for travelling it, if he be not prepared to rough it to the full extent of the term.

The scenery amidst the granite mountains, however, is very fine, the vegetation of oaks, ilexes, and cork-trees, in the midst of a perpetual underwood of myrtles and arbutus, magnificent.

Should he be induced to undertake the journey, he must first of all secure & sure guide, and carry with him everything in the shape of provisions and bedding, since he must sleep out of doors.

The road from Tempio to the Maddalena Island, after descending to the river Carana, crosses the granitic chain, on one of the summits of which is Monte Santo or Luogosanto, where there is a ch. of the 13th cent.

From here, following the Liscia torrent, in the midst of oleanders, and leaving its mouth on the 1., we reach the uninhabited station of il Parau on the beach, and where one is not always sure to find a boat to reach the island, 24 m. in the offing; but one will come over, weather permitting, on making the understood signal, a bonfire.

THE ROUTES

ROUTE III.

FROM SASSARI TO ALGHERO

The 25 m. between these towns may now be travelled in a carriage by the new route, the only impediment being the river of Porto Torres during the rainy season, the bridge over it not being yet completed.

On leaving Sassari the road takes a westerly direction, through a depression at the foot of the hills of Santa Natolia, passing on the rt., about a mile from Sassari, a house, into the wall of which has been built a Roman sarcophagus of good sculpture: 3 m. farther we descend through a romantic glen to the mill of Mulafa, from which we cross an undulating country to the torrent of Perdas Alvas, and a table-land with a second torrent, from which is a rapid ascent to Scala Cavallo, 14 m. from Sassari: here comes in the road from Cagliari to Alghero.

The traveller will have noticed in this part of the country how the trees, especially the wild olives, have their tops bent to the earth and towards the S.E., the effect of the Maestrale, or N.W. wind, which blows during a great part of the year, and violently all over the N. part of Sardinia, From Scala Cavallo to Alghero there is a continuous descent of 11 m. through a country offering little cultivation, with wastes, on which grow the lentiscus, chamærops, &c. &c.

ALGHERO is the capital of the province, and of a bishopric: it is well built, scarcely a dozen of feet above the level of the sea, which surrounds it on three sides; it has a good deal of the aspect of the towns on the Riviera of Genoa and of Catalonia, surrounded with mediæval walls; the streets are narrow, the houses high: the population scarcely reaches 8000.

Alghero has little trade, and, being seldom the resort of strangers, has no kind of inn, so that, if the traveller has not taken the precaution to obtain letters of introduction, he may find himself awkwardly situated; provided with letters, he will experience every kind of hospitality.

Founded in 1102 by the Dorias, Alghero was, during two centuries, the principal station in Sardinia for its maritime trade with Genoa, In 1238 it fell into the hands of the Pisans, but returned to the Genoese, who lost it again in 1354, when, after a memorable siege, it was taken by the King of Aragon, upon which, the inhabitants abandoning it, they were replaced by a colony from Catalonia, whose language is still spoken here: it preserved a certain importance as the port nearest to the continental possessions of its new masters.

Here Charles V. landed during one of his expeditions to Africa in 1541, and paid it the compliment which is repeated to the present day, “handsome and well situated” (“bonita y bien asentada”). The visit of the Emperor was marked by great disorders, which would scarcely have been excusable in a town taken by storm. The port is now of little importance, and the trade with Genoa trifling; it is chiefly the resort of the boats employed in the coral-fishery, and of a few Genoese, Maltese, and French coasters, which carry away the products of the district -raisins (zibibo), wool, cheese, cork bark, sardinias, &c.

The cathedral dates from 1510; the altar of the Holy Sacrament and the monument of the Duke di Montferrat (ob. 1799) are the only objects worthy of notice in it. The ch. of S. Michele has some fair pictures, among others a copy of a Holy Family by Raphael, now at Madrid. The municipality contains some documents interesting for the local history.

The house which Charles V. occupied in 1541 now belongs to the Maramaldo family, and is known as the Casa Albis. The window has been walled up from which the Emperor took such pleasure in witnessing the butchery by his soldiers of the cattle driven into the town to supply his fleet. There are some good modern houses, like those of Italy, near the port. The fortifications have been raised by the different powers that have ruled over Sardinia.

The tower called Lo Sperone, one of the most remarkable, has received a degree of celebrity from having been for 22 years the prison of Vincenzo Sulis, the leader of the popular party at Cagliari in 1794. The view from the ramparts near the Sperone is very fine, especially towards sunset the Monte Doglia, and the more distant peaks of La Nurra, with the vertical escarpment of the Capo Caccia (500 ft. high), appearing on the horizon like so many gigantic spectres.

Besides coral, the coasts about Alghero produce the bivalve shell called Pinna Marina, the silky filaments or byssus of which form a branch of trade. They are manufactured into gloves at Cagliari (as at Taranto in the kingdom of Naples), where they are sold at from 2 to 3 francs a pair.

The country around produces oranges, olive-oil, and wine, the cultivation of which extends to the S. as far as the heights of Scala-Picada; the sanctuary of Valverde is in a delicious situation, 6 m. east of Alghero, in a romantic but unhealthy valley; the lands to the S. are covered with dwarf palms, the roots of which, under the name of margallion, are eaten in the spring by the lower orders;

1. of the town the beach is formed of sand and seaweed (alguas), thrown up by the waves, and from which it is probable Alghero derives its name; they form a kind of long dune, which prevents the flow of the torrents into the sea, thus contributing to the insalubrity of the neighbourhood. We can follow this narrow strip round the bay as far as the Lazzaretto, and along the base of Monte Doglia to Porto Conte, a fine well-protected roadstead, celebrated for the victory of the Aragonese in 1353 over the Genoese under Antonio Grimaldi.

If the weather permits, we may take boat here, and, rounding the Capo della Caccia, visit the celebrated Grotto of Neptune, near the point of the promontory on its W. side. This position of the grotto, which exposes it to the heaviest swell in these seas, is why it can only be visited in calm weather and during a few days in the summer months; and even then it will be more convenient to proceed direct from Alghero by boat, to avoid the unwholesome exhalations from the marshes during the journey by land. The distance is about 14 m. by water, and it will be necessary to carry materials for lighting up the grotto, in order to form an idea of its grandeur and beauty. Entering it, the first chamber, or what may be called the vestibule, offers little to detain us.

The second must be crossed in the boat, as it is filled with water about 20 feet deep; here we row among a forest of stalactites some 60 feet in circumference, farther on a vast hall appears to rest on a grand central stalagmite, beyond which opens the third chamber, where the visitor can land, and roam round galleries 300 and 400 feet long, and examine the strange forms which the calcareous concretions assume.

A second grotto, dell’Altare, may be visited in all weathers from Porto Conte, although the entrance is narrow and difficult; it is far inferior as to its grandeur and natural beauties to the Grotto of Neptune.

At the bottom of the bay, on the shore, may be seen some rude mosaics and ruins of Roman buildings belonging to the Nymphæus Portus, the ancient name of Porto Conte.

THE ROUTES

PERCORSO IV.

DA ALGHERO A OZIERI A OLBIA [fino ai primi decenni del Novecento così si chiamava Olbia]

The whole of this route can be now performed in a carriage, by the Strada Nazionale, distance 91 m. (1474 kil.) This road leads from Alghero to Torralba on the Strada Centrale, from which a new one to Terranova has been lately completed on the E. side of the island.

(Rly. in progress from Torralba to Terranova and the Golfo degli Aranci).

[1856: The first part of this route can be now performed in a carriage, the second on horseback. A good road leads from Alghero to Torralba on the Strada Centrale, from which a new one is now in progress to Terranova, on the E. side of the island; it has only yet been opened as far as Oschiri].

Leaving Alghero by the same road by which we arrived as far as Scala Cavallo (11 m.), we afterwards proceed through a well-cultivated valley to Ittiri (8 m.), a village of 4120 Inhab., built on a tertiary limestone rock full of large oyster-shells; from here we reach the romantic valley of the Rio di Perdas Alvas, near the head of which is situated

Thiesi (14 m. from Ittiri), a town of 2800 Inhab., an ancient fief of the family of Manca di Asinara, now Dukes of Vallombrosa, the head of which in the 18th centy. erected the rich manorial residence on the E. side of the village: the local tradition handed down so unfavourable a souvenir of the feudal exigencies of this Sardinian Gessler, that the castle was destroyed in 1796 by the inhabitants; only its ruins are now to be seen. [5 m. W. of Thiesi, in the Monte Maggiore, is a large grotto, curious from its stalactites; but the country over which we must pass to reach it offers no interest, and the entrance of the cavern is difficult.].

Half an hour S. of Thiesi the volcano of Keremule presents to the geologist an object of much greater interest-a perfect volcanic cone, formed of black scoriæ, rising on a basaltic escarpment to the height of 2150 ft., like Vesuvius, on the side of the Monte Somma; the cone is broken down on the east, and a current of scoriaceous lava descends from it, the road following its N.E. side as far as the Strada Centrale near the chapel of Cabu-Abbas.

3 m. from Thiesi we rejoin the Strada Centrale, at the Cantoniera di CabuAbbas, 2 m. S. of Torralba, following which to the heights of Borutta, the carriage-road branches off towards the centre of the island and the Gulf of Terranova, at first passing between Monte Arana and the Monte Austidu, also a volcanic crater.

7 m. from Torralba, on the rt., is the village of Mores, at the base of Monte Lachesos, overlooking the plain, in the environs of which is found a species of truffle called tuvora, which is collected in the spring, by sounding, with pointed rods, through the super incumbent saud, the tuber emitting a peculiar noise when pierced, like an escape of air. The road follows the plain of the river of Ozieri for 10 m., as far as S. Pietro, after which a slight ascent of 2 m. brings us to

OZIERI, chief town of its province, and a bishop’s see, on the slopes of a valley, at the S. extremity of the plain called the Campo d’Ozieri, in the midst of vineyards; the houses, built of a dark limestone, are in general good; the principal street is paved, and traversed by a watercourse from the monumental fountain at one of its extremities.

The cathedral offers nothing remarkable; the baptistery has some modern pictures by Marghinotti; one of some celebrity in the country, la Madonna della Difesa. In the ch. of la Madonna di Loreto is an old picture on panel representing events in the life of the Virgin. There is a fine view from the chapel of la Madonna di Monserrato on a rising W. of the town.

Ozieri has a population of 7150 Inhab., the great proportion agriculturists or owners of sheep-farms. This town is celebrated for its macaroni and other pastes similar to those of Genoa, and for a kind of bread or biscuit in cakes of an insipid taste.

An excursion may be made from Ozieri to the old city of Ardara, the former capital of the Logudoro, and residence of the Giudichessa Adelasia, the wife of King Hentius, natural son of the Emperor Frederick II., who died a prisoner at Bologna, now reduced to a poor hamlet of 277 Inhab. The walls of the mediæval town are still standing, and the ch. of the Madonna del Regno is, as it was erected in the 11th centy., a rectangular building of 90 ft. by 30, divided into a nave and 2 side aisles; the style is simple and elegant.

There are some remains of paintings in what appears to have been used as a sacristy, much praised by M. Valery. They appear to have been painted in 1515 by a native artist, Johannes de Muru; the style is that of certain old masters of the German school. Ardara is 12 m. E. of Ozieri; in going to it the campo of the latter is traversed. 4 m. before reaching Ardara, on the rt., is the ch. of Sant’ Antioco, on the site of Bisarcio, another mediæval town, also abandoned from the increasing insalubrity of the plain; its ch., resembling that of la Madonna del Regno, dates from 1153; the sculptures over the door are, however, in a better state of preservation. Bisarcio was for many years the seat of a bishopric before it was transferred to Ozieri.

The road from Ozieri to Terranova is now completed.

[1856: The road from Ozieri to Terranova for carriages is approaching as rapidly to completion (1855) as the insalubrity of the intervening country, where the work can only be carried on during 6 months in the year, will permit of, and was open at the commencement of this year as far as Oschiri].

The traveller follows a longitudinal depression, in a N.E. direction, between the mountain-chains of Limbara on the N. and Goceano on the S., leaving on the W. the Nurhag di Borghidu, on an eminence above the Campo di Ozieri; at the 10th m. on the l. is a chapel dedicated to Nuestra Signora di Castro, so called from an ancient Roman station, of which some remains may be seen-the walls, an aqueduct, and some tombs; coins, bronzes, and medals are frequently discovered here. 3 m. beyond Castro we pass Oschiri, a village of 2150 Inhab., and 7 m, farther Berchidda, at the foot of Monte del Giugantinu, from which there is a difficult path that leads in 9 hrs. to Tempio (Rte. 2), across the chain of Limbara.

There are several nurhags S. of Berchidda. The country hereabouts is scarcely cultivated, the produce consisting chiefly in cheese and honey, which are sent to Genoa.

The road follows the upper valley of the R. of Oschiri for 8 m. through an uninhabited district, and, after crossing a kind of table-land for some distance, descends towards Terranova, 18 m. from Berchidda.

Terranova, a poor place of 2000 Inhab., in the midst of a fertile plain of 30 sq. m., at the present day uncultivated, and covered with swamps, which render it one of the most unhealthy towns in the whole island.

The houses are built of granite; the principal or parish ch. is handsome, and has a pulpit, with some good wood sculptures; but the most curious ch. is the old cathedral, dedicated to S. Simplicius, which is supposed to date from the 7th centy.; it is outside the town, almost entirely abandoned, in the midst of a glorious panorama; it contains some ancient columns probably of the Roman Olbia, whose walls may be traced round the modern town.

Of the other ruins may be mentioned remains of an aqueduct and of a pier m. distant. Excavations made here on several occasions have brought to light inscriptions, tombs, bronze statuettes, &c.; and the tourist will find in the possession of the inhabitants an abundance of rings, intaglios, and other Roman ornaments.

The port of Terranova is almost entirely choked up with sand; so much so that it is proposed to form another in the bay of Gli Aranci (although there are no orange-trees there), about 15 m. to the N.N.E., where the new road is to be carried, and off which there is a well-protected roadstead with excellent anchorage.

[Only ed. 1868]. The weekly steamer between Cagliari and La Maddalena calls at Orosei and Terranova every Monday in going, and on Wednesday and Thursday in returning to Cagliari.

THE ROUTES

PERCORSO V.

MACOMER TO BOSA (15 m.)

 This route may be performed in a carriage. It separates from the Strada Centrale between Monte Muradu and Macomer (see Rte. 1), passing in the direction of Sindia, with 1500 Inhab., and descending through Suni to the valley of the Fiume di Bosa, the Temus of the Romans, which is crossed by a bridge of 7 arches, at 18 m. from Macomer, before entering

Bosa, founded in 1112 by the Malaspinas; in a delightful situation, but, as is the case of most other towns near the mouths of rivers in Sardinia, as unhealthy as its position is picturesque. Two causes appear to produce this intemperie – the badly regulated course of the waters of the Temus, with the filth which accumulates in it and decomposes during the summer-and the situation of the town, entirely, protected from the sea-breeze (imbattu), which could renew the air during the hot months. The environs of Bosa are extremely fertile and productive in wine and oil.

The Malmsey (Malvoisia di Bosa) enjoys a well-deserved celebrity.

The population is 6250; there is no building in the town worthy of notice.

The quay and the Strada del Fiume have a busy look; there is an extensive view from the ruins of the Castle of Serravalle, the first of the edifices raised by the Malaspinas, round which the houses of the town were erected. The Roman Bosa was upon the 1. bank of the Temus, 2 m. from the modern town, where there still exists a ch. of the 11th centy., dedicated to St. Peter. Roman coins and inscriptions are often found here.

The river of Bosa is navigable from the town to the sea; the principal export trade consists in timber for shipbuilding, from the forests of Sauccu and Monte Ferru.

THE ROUTES

ROUTE VI.

MACOMER TO SILANUS, NUORO AND OROSEI (75 m.).

The whole of this route, can now be performed in a carriage.

[1856: The first part only of this route, as far as Silanus, can be performed in a carriage, the rest on horseback].

Leaving Macomer, the road to Nuoro runs east, and passes by Birori, a hamlet surrounded with vines, in the midst of a desert of volcanic débris.

Bortigali, a village of 2650 Inhab., is passed on the 1.; the houses are surrounded by gigantic cactuses. 10 m. from Macomer we arrive at 4

Silanus; leaving which, is a very high Nurhag; and passing through Lei, which has some reputation for its wines, after 7 m. reach Bolotana, a village of 2800 Inhab., with a good modern church and a Capuchin convent in a lovely situation. There are upwards of 200 Nurhags in the district round Bolotana; a road leads from here crossing the magnificent oak forests of Monte Polai to Illorai, and from thence to Burgo, a small hamlet, near which, on the S. of Monte Rasu, are the ruins of the castle of Goceano, erected in 1127, and celebrated in Sardinia as the prison of Adelasia Giudichessa di Logudoro, where she was shut up in 1245 by her husband, Enzio King of Sardinia, and natural son of Frederick Barbarossa.

(The excursion from Bolotana to Goceano, including the return journey, can now be made in a few hours by the newly-opened road by Bono and Palado to Ozieri.).

[1856: The excursion from Bolotana to Goceano, including the return journey, will occupy a whole day].

From Bolotana the road to Nuoro descends to the river Tirso, passing which, by the Ponte di 8. Luca, it rises over an undulating region, on which feed numerous flocks of sheep, and which extends to a high plateau, on which, towards the E., at 24 m. from Bolotana, is

NUORO, capital of the province, and a bishop’s residence, with a population of 5100 Inhab. The town is situated on the summit and declivity of a hill 1910 ft. above the sea. The view from here, of the mountains of l’Oliena on the S.E., and of the Gennargentu towards the S., is very fine, especially from the N. side of the town. Excepting its fine position, one of the most picturesque in the island, Nuoro in itself offers little to interest the tourist; the old Pisan cathedral has been replaced by a modern one, and a new prison, which was much wanted, has been lately erected.

The women of Nuoro wear a grey petticoat of undyed wool, a red casaque, and a handkerchief gracefully arranged on the head. At a short distance from the town is the Perda Ballarina, a remarkable rocking stone, much larger than our Logan stone in Cornwall, 46 feet in circumference and 8 feet high. It is of granite.

The carriage-road which connects Nuoro and Macomer is now continued as far as Orosei, which has thus become the principal maritime station of the province; the distance from Nuoro to Orosei is about 24 m., descending to the Rio d’Isalle, whose dreary valley it follows as far as the village of Galtelli, leaving on the 1. Loculi and Irgoli, situated on rising ground beyond the river, where the appearance of the country improves; between Galtelli and Loculi are remains of Sepolturas de is Gigantes, or Giants’ Tombs, called Perda Latta and Perda Ebraica.

[1856: The carriage-road which will connect Nuoro and Macomer is to be continued as far as Orosei, which will then become the principal maritime station of the province; the distance from Nuoro to Orosei is at present 24 m., descending first by La Scala dei Marreri to the Rio d’Isalle, whose dreary valley it follows as far as the villages of Loculi and Galtelli, situated on rising ground over each bank of the river, where the appearance of the country improves; between these two villages are remains of Sepolturas de is Gigantes, called Perda Latta and Perda Ebraica].

Orosei, on the rt. bank of the river of the same name, the ancient Cedrinus, has 1800 Inhab.: between it and the sea is a long narrow marsh or salt lake, the miasmata from which render the place uninhabitable for strangers during the hot months; the beach is protected from the northerly winds by the Punta Nera. About 50 vessels call at Orosei annually, to carry off the superabundant productions of the province, consisting chiefly of corn and cheese.

THE ROUTES

ROUTE VII.

ORISTANO TO IGLESIAS

This journey can only be performed on horseback, except as far as the Cantoniera of Marrubiu (10 m.), on the Strada Centrale (a new road is in progress from here to Guspini, Villacidro, and Decimo Mannu); from thence we must follow in a S. W. direction to Arcidano (7 m.), a little to the W. of which, at the S. extremity of the Stagno di Marceddu, formerly stood the Roman city of Neapolis, the site of which is marked by the insulated ch. of Santa Maria di Nabui, evidently a Pagan edifice adapted to Christian worship; in the vicinity are the ruins of an aqueduct and of a Roman road, which end in the neighbouring lagune.

Beyond Arcidano the road runs S. along the Monte Linas, passing the Nurhags Brancu, St. Orcu, and of Sarecci, which crown monticules at the foot of Monte Arcuentu: the central cone of each of these Nurhags was surrounded by an outer circuit, occupying a larger than usual extent. 10 m. from Arcidano is

Guspini, at the foot of Monte Vecchio, on which, at a height of 1500 ft., are some lead-mines; the ores were formerly reduced at Villacidro, 9 m. to the S.E., where there is a garden and house of the Bishop of Ales. Following the foot of the mountains from Guspini for 5 m., we reach Gonnosfanadiga, at the entrance of a picturesque glen, through which a path in the midst of magnificent forests between the Punta di Santa Vittoria and the Punta di Su Crabulazu leads in 6 hours to

Flumini Maggiore, a village of 2140 Inhab., in a fine valley, surrounded by orange-groves, nearly equalling in extent and luxuriance those of Milis.

Everywhere in the neighbourhood are traces of lead-ores, and in this village there is during the winter months a large population occupied in mining pursuits-for, being one of the most unhealthy localities, none but persons born in it can remain in summer. A journey of 2 hours in a S. direction will bring the traveller to the romantic forest of Antas, which abounds in deer, with a few moufflons.

Obtain a guide to take you to the Casa di Gregorio, a complimentary name here given to the devil, and you will reach, in the midst of a group of ilexes, the ruins of a Roman temple of the Ionic order, but the dimensions of which it is difficult to ascertain on account of the luxuriant vegetation with which it is overgrown; there is an inscription on it in honour of Marcus Aurelius, and General della Marmora considers it to have belonged to the ancient city of Metalla.

An hour beyond these ruins is the chapel of Sant’Angelo, from which the path descends through the valley of La Canonica for 2 hours, to within 1 m. of Iglesias, which is reached after crossing a ridge of hills more than 1500 ft. above the sea, on the rt. of the torrent.

THE ROUTES

ROUTE VIII.

CAGLIARI TO IGLESIAS, PORTO SCUSO AND THE GULF OF PALMAS (62 m.).

This route as far as Gonnesa can be performed in a carriage; from the latter place to Porto Scuso only for the present on horseback; but a carriage-road is nearly completed all the way. The road to the Gulf of Palmas, at Porto Botte, is open throughout. (It may not be out of place here to put the traveller on his guard against the exorbitant demands made at Cagliari by the hirers of vehicles, who will ask 10 francs a-day for what would only be paid 5 at Sassari).

The distance from Cagliari to Iglesias is 34 m.; to Gonnesa 40 m. Leaving by the suburb of Santa Tenera, the road soon branches off on the 1. from the Strada Centrale, passing through Elmas and Assemini, where the rly. from Cagliari to Iglesias, now in progress, will branch off, to Decimo Mannu (10 m.), a small town, the ad Decimam on the Roman road from Karalis to Sulcis, where a good deal of coarse pottery is manufactured.

From here, crossing the rivers Mannu and Samassi upon two good bridges, we reach, after 8 m., Siliqua, S. of which, on two monticules, are the ruined castles of Acqua-fredda and Gioiosa-Guardia, which belonged to the Judges of Arborea.

8 m. farther is Domusnovas, with a population of 1660 Inhab., about which excellent oranges are grown.

In the hill N. of Domusnovas is the curious cavern of S. Giovanni, divided into several chambers with fine stalactites and inerustatious; and at a short distance the abundant spring of the Uccherutta issues from the mountain’s side, and from which it is supposed that Cagliari was supplied with water in the time of the Romans. There are some remains of au aqueduct close by, the erection of which the peasants attribute to the devil in order to furnish a secret passage to a certain Marquis of Oristano in his attacks on Cagliari. W. and near Domusnovas are the ruins of the Nurhag Ortu, the base of which being well preserved will convey a good idea of what must have been the great size of the monument. From here, crossing the Canonica torrent, we arrive, 7 m. from D. Novas, at

IGLESIAS, the chief town of the province; it derives its name from the number of churches it contained in former times; it is a bishop’s see.

The cathedral, founded in 1215, offers scarcely any traces of its original Pisan architecture. The walls, and the old castle on the N.E., are picturesque objects; on the latter is an inscription of 1325 relative to its having been repaired by one of the Aragonese kings.

The only modern edifices of any note in Iglesias are the bishop’s palace and some fountains. The inhabitants (5450) have the reputation of being the least violent in character of the Sardes, who call them Murreddos, or descendants of the Moors.

The costumes differ little from those about Sassari, except that both sexes wear their hair enclosed in a kind of red fillet or net. The affluence of strangers engaged in mining has led to the establishment of an inn at Iglesias; it is kept by a Neapolitan, but it is far from good.

The Iglesianos call their city the Flori di Mundu, a pompous designation, somewhat justified, however, by the beauty of the gardens that surround it; that of the Dominican convent is particularly worth visiting. 1 m. S.W. of Iglesias is the Monteponi, on the side of which, at an elevation of 1095 ft. above the sea, is a lead-mine, the richest in the whole island. A new road from it to the sea is likely to add to its prosperity by facilitating the export of the ores. It is under the direction of M. Keller, an engineer of the school of Chemnitz.

At 6 m. from Iglesias we reach Gonnesa, near which some unsuccessful researches for coal have been lately made; 8 m. farther the new road will end at Portoscuso, now a small fishing-town opposite the island of San Pietro, from which a strait of 4 m. separates it. San Pietro and the neighbouring island of Sant’Antioco, which are easily reached, are of sufficient interest to detain the traveller two or three days.

San Pietro, the Insult Accipitrum of the ancients, and where so many Roman and Phoenician coins have been discovered, had become depopulated in the middle ages. Its present inhabitants are the descendants of a Genoese colony, who, in 1757, settled here from the island of Tabarca, on the coast of Africa. Exposed to the incursions of the Barbary pirates, it is only since Lord Exmouth’s expedition against Algiers that they have been able to enjoy tranquillity, and to develop their industry.

The chief town, Carloforte, on the E. side, with 3400 Inhab., is well built, resembling those of the Riviera; the inhabitants speak Genoese. The men are mostly employed in the coral and tunny fisheries. Except a few vines, the nature of the soil is little adapted for cultivation. On the landing-place at Carlo-forte is a colossal statue of Charles Emanuel III., who not only granted this island to them, but ransomed in 1744 from slavery their Tabarcan brethren, carried off by the Tunisian rovers.

The island of Sant’Antioco, which can be more conveniently visited from Porto Botte, in the Gulf of Palmas, to which there is a carriage-road from Gonnesa of 11 m., is double the size of that of S. Pietro, with only 2850 Inhab. in the two villages of Calasetta and Sant’Antioco, the former of Genoese, the latter of Sardinian origin.

Sant’Antioco is on the site of the Roman Sulcis, and many of its houses are built of ancient débris. A large proportion of the population live in grottoes on the hillside, and which were probably once sepulchral caverns. The island is connected with Sardinia by a Roman bridge and causeway, a little way S of S. Antioco, which, although in ruins, still serves for its original purpose. Phœnician inscriptions, bronzes, and intaglios have been discovered here, with others of the Roman period. The intaglios of the latter are abundant, and in general beautifully engraved; they are worn on feast-days by the female peasantry. The monticule of the grottoes was the necropolis of Sulcis. Between the village and the ancient port is a mediæval fort, built of Roman materials.

The islands of S. Pietro and S. Antioco, as well as the adjoining coast of Sardinia, are favourite haunts of the tunny-fish of the Mediterranean. It is here that exist the tonnaras of Porto Paglia, Porto Scuso, Isola Piana, Cala di Vinagre, and Cala Sapone, which have been the origin of several of the large fortunes of the island. The three first of these tonnaras are still very productive, and the traveller visiting the island in May would do well to witness this extraordinary fishery. Sometimes as many as 400 fish, each 12 ft. long, and weighing from 1200 to 1500 lbs., each, are taken in a single haul.

THE ROUTES

ROUTE IX.

CAGLIARI TO LACONI, WITH EXCURSIONS INTO THE MOUNTAINOUS DISTRICTS OF LA BARBAGIA, AND FROM THENCE TO NUORO (86 m.).

This route can be performed in a carriage to Laconi; the remainder only on horseback.

Of the new carriage-road between Cagliari and Nuoro, 55 m., as far as Laconi, are now completed; the remaining part is in progress. On leaving Cagliari we follow the

Strada Centrale as far as Monastir, 13 m. from which a road of 13 m., following the 1. bank of the R. Mannu, leads to Senorbì, a village of 1270 Inhab., at the southern extremity of the hilly country of the Trexenta, one of the finest corn districts in the island. At Senorbì and the two following villages will be found a kind of inn, where in case of need the tourist can put up. From Senorbì to Suelli (3 m.) and Mandas (7 m. farther), a village of 2000 Inhab., 1560 ft. above the level of the sea-it has several good houses. Quitting Mandas, after an ascent of 5 m., leaving on the 1. the village of Serri; from here a road to

Lanusei branches off to the rt. Isili, the chief town of the province, contains scarcely 2450 Inhab. The neighbouring country is covered with Nurhags. The great oval plateau of La Giara, 6 m. farther W., is a basaltic mass of 20 m. in circumference, at an elevation of 1940 ft. above the sea, the edges of which are irregular, having Nurhags on many of its projecting escarpments. There is one well preserved on leaving Isili by the road to Laconi.

The road descends through a pretty valley, passing the chapel of St. Sebastian and the village of Nurallao, to arrive after 12 m. from Isili at Laconi, a town of 2100 Inhab. and 1750 ft. above the sea, at the W. foot of the escarpments of the plateau of Sarcidano, the torrent descending from which forms a cascade in the gardens of the Marquis di Laconi, near the ruins of an old castle. Laconi is placed, as regards the high mountains of Sardinia, nearly as Perth with reference to the Grampians; it will form the point from which the tourist who wishes to visit the mountains of La Barbagia (the wildest part of the island, whose inhabitants boast of never having been subjugated by the Romans or Carthaginians) must take his departure. In 4 or 5 days he will be able to explore all round the Monte Gennargentu, passing by Aritzo, Fonni, the pass of Corr-e-boi, the rock of Perduliana, returning to Laconi by Seulo and the forests of Sarcidano. In making this excursion it will be absolutely necessary to procure guides from the localities, to carry the necessary supply of provisions, and to be prepared to sleep out of doors. This excursion may be spread over 5 days, as follows:

1th day. Arrive at Aritzo in 5 h., passing by Meana. Aritzo is a mountain-village of 1800 Inhab., 2680 ft. above the sea, and at the foot of the mountain of Fontana Congiuda, from which Cagliari derives its supplies of ice in the summer. The costumes of the women here are picturesque. Sleep on the slopes of the Gennargentu, in order to be able to reach the summit next day at an early hour.

2td day. The summit (the Punta Bruncu Spina) of this highest point of the island (6293 ft.) can be reached on horseback. There is a delightful spring near the highest point, where one can breakfast. After descending on the N. side we can reach Fonni, a town of 2900 Inhab., and 3276 ft. above the sea, to sleep. This picturesque village is on the declivities of Monte Spada.

3rd day. Follow from Fonni the hills on the 1. bank of the Rio Gobbo to the Original from Col  or pass of Corr-e-boi, 4180 ft. above the sea, from which descend into the valley of Rio di Perda Curdda, one of the highest branches of the Flumendosa, and sleep in the neighbourhood of the Rock of Perduliana.

4th day. Through the forests along the 1. bank of the Flumendosa, to the chapel of San Sebastiano, near Sini, where there are beds of anthracite coal; and from thence, passing between Monte Orru and Monte Perdedu, to Seulo.

5th day. There are two roads from Seulo to Laconi:

the shortest to the W., crossing the Flumendosa by a ford which can only be passed in dry weather, and ascending from thence to the plateau of Sarcidano, and through the oak forests to Laconi,

The second route, longer, but more picturesque, from Seulo, in a southerly direction, by the Nurhag of San Cosimo, and (3 m. from Seulo) by a small mud-volcano, similar to those of Maccaluba in Sicily; from here descending to the Flumendosa, which will be forded 2 m.

1. of Villanova Tulo, to ascend to that village, and from there to cross diagonally the plateau of Sarcidano to Laconi, about 18 miles,

It is impossible to exaggerate the beauty of the rocks and forests traversed during the preceding excursions, especially about Perdaliana. It is not unusual to fall in with herds of deer and moufflons. The Flumendosa and its affluents are as swarming with fish as the woods that surround it with game; and if you apply for hospitality to a village curate, you may be sure to find excellent trout for supper.

The road from Laconi to Nuoro, 31 m., passes through Meana, Sorgono, and Fonni. From here the carriage-road is in progress, by Gavoi and Orani, to join the high-road from Macomer to Orosei, and between Bolotana and Nuoro.

[1856: The road from Laconi to Nuoro, 31 m., passes through Meana, Aritzo, and Fonni. The antiquarian traveler…].

The antiquarian traveller will find at 3 m. W. of Fonni 3 Menhirs or Perdas fittas (upright stones), which are of a rough conical form, and appear to have formed part of a Sepoltura de is Gigantes.

7 m. N.E. of Fonni is Mamoiada, a village of 1700 Inhab., on the high road from Nuoro to Lanusei, surrounded by woods of almond and hazel trees, that furnish the ingredients for the torroni, which, made here, are sold all over the island.

Half an hour beyond Mamoiada is the ch. of La Madonna di Loreto, near which there are other Perdas fittas; the central one, thrown down some years ago in search of treasure, is 20 ft. long, and appears to have been worked carefully on the surface.

From here the road continues along the rt. bank of the Rio d’Oliena, to ascend afterwards to the plateau on which Nuoro (9 m. from Mamoiada) is situated.

THE ROUTES

ROUTE XI.

CAGLIARI TO TORTOLÌ, BY THE EAST COAST, THROUGH MURAVERA AND BARI

It is possible to travel from Cagliari to Tortolì on horseback, following the line of the ancient Roman road described in the Antonine Itinerary, which passes by Quartu and S. Isidoro, and crosses the chain which ends at Cape Carbonara, near the summit of the Sette Fratelli (3188 ft. high), arriving at Muravera, 42 m. from Cagliari, in the latter portion without meeting a human habitation.

Muravera, with a population of 2050 Inhab., is in a fertile district, and chief town of the territory of Sarrabus; it is, however, unhealthy, from being near the delta of the Flumendosa, and about 3 m. from the sea. The road is often intercepted by the rising of the river, when the ferry-boat cannot ply.

From Villaputzu, on the opposite side of the river, the path follows a valley away from the sea in a northerly direction, to enter afterwards into that of the Tertenia, which is ascended to its origin. The Passo di Guadazzoni, leading over the mountains that separate the Tertenia valley from the sea-coast, is afterwards crossed, to descend to Bari, from which there is a road leading to Tortolì.

22 m. are reckoned between Muravera and Tertenia, 11 between Tertenia and Bari, and 8 from Bari to Tortolì.

The difficulties of this route are so great that we would not advise any one to undertake it if not attracted to the territory of Sarrabus and the valley of Tertenia by metallurgical and mining pursuits-these two districts offering frequent indications of metalliferous veins and of carboniferous deposits.

A steamer calls at Muravera and Tortolì every Sunday and Monday in going from Cagliari to the island of La Maddalena, and in the return voyage to Cagliari on the Thursdays.

THE ROUTES