40a.2 and 40b.2: The “Ala” of Pozzomaggiore is a single-tower nuraghe located south of the Rio Mannu, with a basal diameter of about 12 meters and a remaining height of nearly 10 meters. The monument retains the intact tholos covering of the chamber. The mezzanine, situated above the entrance corridor, is accessed via a subsidiary staircase that starts from the right niche of the chamber.
There are nuraghi that are not only grand in themselves but also for the landscape in which they are set. The nuraghe “Iscolca” is one of these: it dominates the valley of Semestene and that of the surrounding villages. Not easily accessible, it is reached after a steep climb, through arid and rocky pastures, with emerging stones that hint at the ancient existence of a large village.
Nothing appears excavated in this monument, and only the tholos of the second level is accessible. The courtyard in front of the main tower is completely submerged in stones and brambles.
The photos of the nuraghe Ala are by Sergio Melis. Those of the nuraghe Iscolca are by Giovanni Sotgiu, Marco Cocco, and Nicola Barbicha Tornello.
