On a plateau of the Marghine, in the centre of Sardinia, stands a Nuragic fortress that dominates the surrounding territory, among green hills, valleys and streams.
From its position, you can enjoy a wonderful panorama over the Tirso valley and the Ottana plain; but also intriguing are its considerable size and the difficulty in reconstructing its layout. The Nuraghe Tolinu rises in the territory of Noragugume, two kilometres south-east of the town. The structure, dating from the Middle Bronze Age, rises steeply on the escarpment that marks the eastern edge of the plateau, in an area dense with evidence dating from the Nuragic period.
You will be surprised by its size – 635 square metres – and the diameter of the keep, which measures 12 metres. It is surrounded by a bastion, which must have been connected to other towers, but as things stand today only one tower can be identified, with traces of a circular chamber.The central tower, rebuilt, has a vaguely elliptical shape. You will notice the large window on the first floor and, at the back, traces of the corridor on which the staircase that joined the level below, now covered by rubble, must have led. Next to the large window is a small ‘teardrop-shaped’ room, from which perhaps a further corridor started. Facing the chamber on the first level, you can observe a niche and, on the opposite side, the stairwell through which the terrace could be accessed. Around the remains of the nuraghe, traces of the adjoining village can be seen […].
The ‘symbol’ of Noragugume, however, is not a nuraghe, but a pedra fitta, or menhir: one of the best known on the island, it is called Sa Perda ‘e Taleri. Also known as the menhir of Giorgia Rajosa, it is a basalt monolith, completely isolated in the countryside. It is about four and a half metres high, well preserved, with evidence of careful workmanship using the hammer technique. At its foot are fragments of millstones and pestles, as well as numerous obsidian flakes.
Source: Sardinia Tourism.
The photos of the Tolinu nuraghe are by Pietrino Mele, Andrea Mura – Nuragando Sardegna and Romano Stangherlin. Those of the menhir Sa Perda ‘e Taleri are by Giovanni Sotgiu.
