Corpo Pagina
The most ancient evidence of human frequentation of the territory of Settimo San Pietro, municipality part of the Metropolitan City of Cagliari, dates back to the Recent Neolithic; during this period the domus de janas de “S ’Acqua ‘e is Dolus” were built.
A collection of finds on display in the Archaeological Museum of Cagliari come from different locations of the territory of Settimo San Pietro and cannot be clearly defined. Some of them, can be ascribed to a pre-nuragic settlement. Among them, tools, obsidian arrowheads and an hatchet made of polished stone.
The Nuragic complex of Cuccuru Nuraxi, located on the homonymous hill and dating back to the Bronze Age, includes a complex nuraghe with three towers (trilobate nuraghe) and a well temple, linked to the cult of water. The artifacts found inside the temple and the annexed votive well date the construction of the place of worship in the thirteenth century, and its use right up until the seventh century BC. The finds, including clay particles, spindle whorls, a bone handle and a little sandstone betyl, are today kept at the Archaeological Museum of Cagliari.
The access to the sacred well, built up with sandstone blocks and about 20 metres deep, is inside one of the secondary towers.
The name of this town is of Roman origin, in fact it comes from from the expression “Septimo ab urbe lapide”, in reference to the seven miles that separate it from Cagliari.
During the Roman period the town had a great development and monuments and structures were built. In 1880 in the locality “Is Argiddas” (wild olives trees), a Roman aqueduct was found.
In 1996, during planting work near the rural church of San Giovanni Battista—originally built in the Romanesque style by the Victorine monks of Marseille—an important floor mosaic was brought to light. The work, which is in excellent condition but currently covered for conservation purposes, is particularly extensive and features numerous elaborate decorative patterns. These motifs testify to the existence of a significant residential building, possibly a villa. Comparisons with mosaics of similar style and patterns lead scholars to date the work between the 5th and 6th centuries.
Picture: church of San Pietro
ph.credits: Noize86 at Italian Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/>, via Wikimedia Commons
