Il tempio di Domu 'e Urxia

Il tempio di Domu 'e Urxia is one of the most important Nuragic cult buildings of the megaron type in Sardinia. It stands in the territory of Esterzili, in the locality of Cuccereddì, at almost one thousand metres above sea level, in an area of pastures and ancient transhumance routes. Its position is not marginal: nearby there are a Nuragic village, a nuraghe, megalithic enclosures and the sacred spring of Monti 'e Nuxi, elements that indicate intensive use between the second and first millennia BC. The temple, built with large schist blocks, has an elongated rectangular plan, considerable dimensions and two chambers preceded by an in-antis vestibule; the whole was enclosed within an elliptical sacred precinct. Excavations have yielded bronze figurines and other votive materials, allowing the complex to be dated to the second half of the 2nd millennium BC, with continuity of use until the Roman period. The monumentality of the building and the territorial context suggest a reference sanctuary for pastoral communities and highland settlements, linked to ritual practices and the symbolic management of the landscape.