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Discovering
the Island
Main Attractions Edition
20 - I GIGANTI DI
MONTE 'E PRAMA
Cabras, 9,000 inhabitants, is a town in the province of Oristano. Its economy is mainly based on fishing. It is a densely populated area in pre-Nuragic and Nuragic times. There are traces of settlements dating back to Neolithic times, such as the village of Cuccuru is Arrius.
So far, 75 nuraghi have been found in the municipal territory, 47 of which are single-towers and 28 of complex, quadrilobed or polylobed type.
Due to its geographical position, Cabras was a continuous destination for the Mediterranean peoples: Phoenicians, Punic, Carthaginians and Romans.
The settlement of the Phoenicians and the foundation of Tharros date back to the 8th century BC.
Further evidence of the archaeological wealth of the area were the excavations that brought to light the Giants of Mont'e Prama.
The discovery of the site was accidental, it happened in March 1974 at the hands of a group of farmers who worked the land.
In the 4 excavations that followed between 1975 and 1979 were found 5178 fragments dating back to the Nuragic civilization (between the ninth and thirteenth century BC): 15 heads, 27 busts, 176 fragments of arms, 143 of legs and 784 fragments of shields. Most of the fragments are kept in the warehouses of the National Archaeological Museum of Cagliari.
From the work of reassembling part of the fragments it was possible to complete 38 sculptures, of which 28 statues and 16 models of nuraghi.
The statues of the giants, which probably take as a model the nuragic bronzes for represented characters and styles, are all-round sculptures made of chalky sandstone and are between 2 and 2 and a half meters high.
Among the models there are the boxers (16), the warriors (5) and the archers (5), and they differ from each other in clothing and weapons. Boxers, for example, have a skirt, are bare-chested and hold the shield over their heads with their left arm. Archers wear a short tunic, chest protection and a helmet with two horns from which long braids sprout, the left hand holds the bow.
According to some studies, this statuary, the oldest in the western Mediterranean, had to exalt a strongly anthropized area and border a road axis of passage and connection that started from the Nuragic port close to the gulf and led to the most important Nuragic palace in the area, that of Milis.
The area of Monte and 'Prama, known for giants, is characterized by a very important necropolis, highlighted by the latest excavations conducted with the most recent techniques of geophysical prospecting. The same investigations have found, on the same adjacent area, several hectares underground with structural anomalies most likely recalling forms of anthropization, specifically a probable village.
Cabras boasts a whole series of attractions including:
- Giovanni Marongiu Municipal Archaeological Museum;
- Tharros;
- Church of San Giovanni di Sinis;
- Coastal Towers;
- Village of San Salvatore;
- Pond of Cabras.
