Sardinia

Historical Signs

THE AGE PRENURAGICA

The first traces, of the human presence in Sardinia, are constituted by tools realized on great splinters, they go up again to the Paleolitico Inferiore (500.000 - 100.000).

They are also known material of the Paleolitico Superiore (35.000-10.000 a.C.) while they are missing, to today, testimonies of the Paleolithic Medio.

In Sardinia it is ample the documentation of the period Neolithic.

The most ancient phase (6.000 - 4.000 a.C.) it is characterized for the presence of the ceramics he/she dictates cardiale, from the recurrent use to decorate the vases before the cooking with the edge of a shell (edible cardium).

The testimonies of this period often originate from caves and shelters under rock, that are used both as residences that as places of burial. The Neolithic Medio (4.000-3.500 a.C.) is characterized by the culture of Bonu Ighinu. Of this period varied installations are known in caves and in villages and the most ancient burials in small artificial caves.

In the Neolithic Recente the culture of Ozieri is framed (3.500-2.700 a.C. ) documented in installations in cave, in villages to the open one and in graves dug in the rock (domus de janas). In the Ancient Neolithic (2.700-2.500 a.C.), besides the final results of culture Ozieris are put the cultural aspects of Filigosa and Abealzu, respectively characterized from cups careened to rigid profile and from straw-covered bottle vases and with drafts mammillari.

The Evolved Neolithic (2.500 - 2.000 a.C.) he/she sees the spread some culture of Mountain Claro that is found again in villages in domus necropolis de janas and in funeral caves. In the Final Neolithic (2.000-1800 a.C.) current cultural Campaniforme is spread it exclusively notices from funeral contexts, above all domus de janas. The following age of the Ancient Bronze (1800-1600 a.C.) and represented by the culture of Bonnanaro whose stay they are documented especially in domus de janas and in burials megalithic, while they are being to the moment rare the recoveries in housing contexts.

THE CIVILIZATION NURAGICA

The researchers almost all arrange in to put the beginning of the civilization nuragica with the passage from the Ancient Bronze to the Middle Bronze, around the 1.600 a.C.

Already from his more ancient phase the architecture elaborates, besides the towers nuragiche, numerous burials megalithic, said graves of giants and some examples of places of cult. But it is above all of the age of the Recent and Final Bronze that we have the greatest testimonies both in architectural circle that material.

This period sees the realization of the greatest part of that places of cult denominated temples to well, where they had to unwind the tied up ceremonies to the cult of the waters. Sardinia is interested, besides, from the navigation micenea, that brings in the island new people, presumably attracted by its exceptional mining resources. In the material production it is assisted to an improvement of the technical quality of the ceramics but, above all, to an extraordinary to bloom some metallurgical production, on the push also of importations of metallic and tied up objects to the metallurgy from the island in Cyprus.

In the first age of the Iron the production of the manufactured articles in bronze reaches notable levels, the realization of weapons and objects of ornament are cooperated production of the bronzy figurines, of the small boat votive and of other objects in miniature. The production of continuous bronzetti in the phase Orientalizzante and to it realization of great statues is cooperated in stone that they already reproduce figures and characters known in the bronzistica.

In the final phase of his history the civilization nuragica sees the contemporary bloom some cities fenicie up to the conquest cartaginese (end century VI a.C.) that it will almost mark his crash in the whole Sardinia.

Around the 750 a.C. Sardinia was interested by the colonization fenicia, after some decades of commercial relations. The first foundation and that of Sulci (S. Antioco), follows, before the end of the VIII century a.C., from Karalis (Cagliari), Nora, Bithia (Tower of Chia), Tharros. The Carbolic ones were installed on islets or promontories, and from these they dealt beyond the sea the mineral ones of lead and copper acquired by the native populations.

Rare it is the foundation of centers in the inside, attested awry only Sirai and Breads Loriga, to control of the thick mining of the Sulcis-lglesiente. They come in the island produced exotic: cauldrons and bronzy torcieri and the refined person cafeteria china etrusco and Greek, as well as pots of oil perfumed product in the same regions. These objects are found again both in the carbolic centers, in particular way in the burials together with the objects typical of their ritual, both near the inside populations. Toward half the VI century a.C. Cartagine, in his politics of Mediterranean expansion, it turns to Sardinia and, alternate circumstances, reach later to conquer it around the 510 a.C.

The Punicis also exploit the island from the sour-pastoral point of view and they stud the territory of a myriad of installations. The cities become more prosperous, as they reveal us ceramics Greek frets: the oreficeries, are imported from southern Italy, is locally produced. Always from the Greek world cultural and religious influences as the cult of the goddess of the harvests Demetras arrive.

Rich it is also the production of china and the tied up objects to the private sphere: amulets and custom jewelry, realized often in glassy pasta. The sculptural shops are especially active in the realization of the steles of the tophets, in which religious symbols and figures of divinity are represented.

THE ROMAN AGE AND ALTOMEDIEVALE

In the 238 a.C. the Romans are appropriated of Sardinia, called by the mercenary punicis rebelled him to Cartagine. The first times are troubled by the resistance of the populations Sardinian-puniche, that culminates in the bankrupt revolt of Amsicora of the 215 a.C.

Sardinia Roman, politically stays for a long time culturally rooted in the traditions cultural puniches: still in the III century AD we have public registrations in characters and language punica.

The inheritance cartaginese remains in the cults, especially in those reported to the popular devotion for the divinities of the harvests. In the urban centers the greatest impulse is noticed to the romanizzation, through the construction of the sanctuaries of Street Malta to Cagliari and of Sulci (S.Antioco).

The real romanizzation of the territory takes foot in the I century a.C., when the products of the material culture Romans peculiarly come, as the ceramics Sealed Italic.

In imperial age the cities are equippeded with thermal baths, Holes and temples. The public structures and the richest deprived houses are adorned of sculptures and of mosaics in some cases realized by African workmans. Shops that produce common and more refined objects rise.

A great road net is stretched that connects principal city of the island. The wheat and the mineral metalliferis are dealt and exchanged with wine by the Italy and by the Gallia, oil from the Iberian peninsula and above all in northern Africa, accompanied by the built ceramics in the same zones.

Around the 450 d.C. the Vandals, that were appropriated in the North Africa, they occupy Sardinia for about one century, without this signs a solution of continuity with the preceding period.

To them it follows the period of the Byzantine domination, during which the island, above all from 698 d.C., year when the Arabs conquer Cartagine, it slowly starts to be detached from the influences political day-pupils and to autonomously govern him.