Day Three: Did you know?

The period of Sardinia’s Bronze Age and its three phases: Early, Middle and Late, runs from ciirca 2200 to 900 BC. Sardinia’s Bronze Age is also known as the Nuragic age.

The Nuraghi (which give their name to this period) are stone towers that can be found all over Sardinia. They were built as circular single-towers or larger complexes with up to five circular towers (with internal chambers) and walls surrounding the complex. Currently there are 7000 known nuraghi around the island. Imagine trying to see even half of that number in a lifetime.

The Nuragic complex of Su Nuraxi di Barumini in central southern Sardinia is one of the best-known of the complex nuraghi. It is now protected under the Unesco World Heritage Convention.

During the Bronze Age the Sea Peoples were recorded by Egyptian and other governments in the Near East. Among these different groups was one known as the “Shardana” or “Sherden.” It has been speculated that these were either Sardinians who came to Egypt as warriors, or travelled to Sardinia after their battles in the Near East.