Outside the city of Cagliari you can see places and breathtaking views, truly amazing valleys covered by old Junipers and Mediterranean flora of fantastic colors. After a short ride, and through an artificial isthmus, started by the Carthaginians and completed by the Romans, which connects Sardinia with the island of Sant'Antioco, you come to the homonymous City.
In the Harbour city of Sant'Antioco, which had a great importance in the Punic and Romanen eras, you can find traces of the ancient civilizations such as the acropolis and the necropolis, the Phoenician-Punic tombs and the tophet (where, in the Punic era, birds and small animals were sacrificed to the gods, and buried).
One of the main monuments of the historic center is the church dedicated to the local martyr, San`Antioco, built on the Phoenician-Punic necropolis, where there are the catacombs, that are very interesting to visit.
In the Church, of Byzantine style, are preserved fragments of marble sculptures dating from the VI-XI centuries. Within it is also a precious reliquary of monumental structure, of embossed silver, created in 1615 by the silver smith Sizino Barrai, and used for the preservation of the saint's skull.
In this island, rich in history and that distinguishes itself for its Mediterranean nature, lives an extraordinary woman, candidate for the UNESCO intangible heritage, which has been the subject of many newspaper articles and documentaries: Master Mrs. Chiara Vigo.
She will explain you how to create a marine silk, woven from fibers that are extracted from the giant clams (Pinna Nobilis), that she herself collected. The fine bisso yarn is now unavailable. It is produced by bivalve molluscs (Pinna nobilis or Nacchera) that secrete a slime in order to adhere to the surrounding rocks. The fiber produced can be up to a length of about 20 cm and has a brown-greenish color. In ancient times it was considered very valuable and was used to wrap regal outfits intended only for kings, popes and czars. And is her work the creation of a museum of Sant'Antioco's Bisso, where you can admire pieces of an unmatched beauty. The encounter with this unique artist will make you look from another perspective the sea and the nature of this wonderful island.
The duration is one day (8 hours).
walking tour + Transfer
