The nuraghe Santu Antine (Torralba), built of dark basalt stone, dominates the Campu Giavesu basin at a crossroads of important routes from the north to the south of the island. It stands out in a plain rich with nuragic towers located very close to each other, so much so that this area is often referred to as the “Valley of the nuraghi.” Its powerful structures have attracted and fascinated many travelers, including foreigners, who visited the Island in the nineteenth century; a first reconstructive drawing of this nuraghe, by the naturalist Francesco Cetti, dates back to the mid-eighteenth century. Certainly, despite more or less recent excavations revealing other nuraghi with complex and articulated architectures, the nuraghe Santu Antine can still be considered the synthesis and apogee of nuragic architecture and deserves the name that still resonates in popular tradition of “Nuragic Royal Palace.”(Excerpts from the book by Luisanna Usai and Salvatore Pirisinu “I nuraghi della Sardegna” – 2022 Edizioni Della Torre) The photos of the nuragic palace of Santu Antine and the surrounding village are by: Valentino Selis, Marco Secchi, Bibi Pinna, Maurizio Cossu, Nicola Castangia, Lucia Corda, Andrea Mura-Nuragando Sardegna, Diversamente Sardi, Francesca Cossu, and ArcheoUri Vagando.
