Mont'e Prama

The necropolis of Monte Prama is located at the base of the hill that bears the same name, at a distance of about 2 km from the town of Cabras, along the road that leads from San Salvatore to the town of Riola Sardo.

After the accidental discovery of the site in March 1974 by peasants farming in the area, several excavation and recovery missions followed between 1975 and 1979, conducted by the Superintendency for Archaeological Heritage of Cagliari and Oristano and the University of Cagliari.

The first excavation was conducted in 1975 (under the direction of A. Bedini) and identified a dozen graves consisting of lithic cists (small stone-built coffin-like box) with square and circular pits, some of which are considered to be Nuragic ceramic artifacts.

In the second official dig, conducted between 1977 and 1979 (under the direction of C. Tronchetti), thirty more graves, aligned in a single row from south to north, were discovered, along with three more to the east. Immediately behind the graves, a segment of a ceremonial road with the same orientation was uncovered.

Thank to the recent restoration of these sculptural fragments at the Center of Conservation and Restoration of Li Punti (Sassari), 28 statues (all fragmentary) have been identified so far, representing 16 boxers, 5 archers, and 5 warriors.

The restoration work has allowed the identification of 28 male statues, including 16 boxers, 6 archers, 6 warriors; 16 models of nuraghe, of which 8 cases refer to monotower monuments, 3 to four-lobed complexes, 5 to poly-lobed nuraghe.

In the Museum of Cabras, a selection of male statues, six in total (three boxers, two archers and a warrior), and four models of nuraghe are on display.