ARDARA

Located in the northwestern part of Sardinia, in the Logudoro region, lies the town of Ardara, just over 30 km from the city of Sassari.

The town’s geographical characteristics are those of a hilly area, reaching its highest elevation, around 480 meters above sea level, in the northern part of the town, in the “Binzana” area, which marks the border with the town of Chiaramonti.

To the north, the town of Ardara also touches the territory of Ploaghe, in a long boundary that also includes the northwestern portion of the municipality. Ardara shares its western border with Siligo, while the entire southern part, which is also the one with the lowest elevations, touches the municipal limits of the town of Mores.

The lowest altitude, around 215 meters above sea level, is reached near two rivers. These are the “Riu Badde de Ardara” and “Riu Cannuzzu” rivers, both tributaries of the “Riu Mannu of Ozieri.” Finally, Ardara borders Ozieri along its entire eastern side.

Watercourses of varying sizes and flow rates are present throughout the area, and most of the fields are flat. These characteristics, which facilitate agricultural work, give Ardara a very high percentage of fertile land.

Seen from above, the town of Ardara has an elongated shape, extending from north to south. It is entirely traversed by Provincial Road 20, which connects the town to Mores to the south and to State Road 729 to the north. The town first developed around the historic centre to the north, where the streets are narrow and sometimes paved, and then gradually southward, where a more regular road network can be seen and where the houses are also larger. The main services include various types of businesses, a bank and post office, bars and restaurants, and a museum that bears witness to the town’s important historical past.

Within the town centre lies one of the most significant remnants of the town of Ardara from the time of the Giudicato of Torres. All that remains today are the ruins, particularly those of the nearly 12-meter-high tower, of what was the most important judicial palace of that era. Unfortunately, the state of decay makes any hypothetical reconstruction of the original complex difficult, but the structures visible today, reduced to fragmentary walls and foundation outcrops, nevertheless allow us to recognize the original layout of an imposing building, constructed with local volcanic materials, consistent with those used in the Basilica of Santa Maria del Regno.

Medieval documentary sources offer significant insight into the nature of the building. Between the 11th and 13th centuries, texts mentioning Ardara consistently refer to “palacium” and not “castrum.” This suggests that the original structure was not conceived as a military fortress, but as a representative residence. With the end of the Giudicato and the conquest of Ardara by the Doria family, needs changed profoundly, and the palace was gradually adapted for defensive purposes and transformed into a fortified structure, taking on characteristics more similar to those of a castle. By the end of the 16th century the building appeared to be in a state of ruin and until the mid-19th century a substantial portion of the wall still remained standing, but the decay was by then advanced.

The etymology of the name Ardara is uncertain and is subject to various interpretations. The toponym is documented in the Middle Ages in the forms “Ardar” and “Ardara.” The most widespread hypothesis links it to the Latin “arduus,” referring to a high or difficult-to-reach place, due to the town’s geographic location.

Another interpretation traces it to a pre-Latin Paleo-Sardinian root, linked to the morphological characteristics of the territory. Suggestions of an ancient Mediterranean origin have also been advanced, but these are not given much weight. Overall, the name seems to reflect the relationship between the site and its dominant role in the landscape, despite the lack of definitive linguistic evidence.

Ardara’s economy is traditionally tied to agriculture and pastoralism. The presence of water and relatively fertile soil favours local crops, agriculture and livestock farming, together with small-scale rural activities still forming the mainstay of the town’s economy today.

Alongside these traditional activities, a growing contribution comes from tourism linked to the town’s historical and cultural heritage, particularly the Basilica of Santa Maria del Regno and the medieval historic centre, which attract visitors interested in Romanesque history and architecture. The influx of tourists to the area has given rise to new related businesses, particularly in the hospitality sector, with bed and breakfasts and restaurants.

The parish church of Ardara, dedicated to Santa Maria del Regno (Our Lady of the Kingdom), is located on the northern outskirts of the town in a panoramic position overlooking the entire valley below. It was built during the second half of the 11th century and consecrated in 1107. It represents one of the most significant monuments of Romanesque architecture in Sardinia and an element of the town’s identity, closely linked to its history as the capital of the Giudicato of Torres. The building originated as a palatine chapel, a court church, located near the Giudicato palace, where the main ceremonies of government and the community were once held. The façade, constructed with blocks of local dark basalt stone, is divided into five vertical sections delimited by semi-columns and topped by small arches. The choice of volcanic stone reflects the use of available local resources and contributes to the building’s imposing appearance. At the centre of the façade is a doorway surmounted by an arch and a mullioned window, a typical Romanesque element that lets light into the interior. On the left side and behind it is the square bell tower with a double bell gable. The interior of the church reflects the austere exterior with a three-nave layout. Columns delimit the central nave and simultaneously support the structure, which ends in a wooden roof. The lower side aisles house works of art, paintings, and religious depictions. But the most majestic work of art within this sanctuary is the main altarpiece, a work of extraordinary dimensions, approximately ten meters high and six meters wide, composed of thirty-one painted panels interspersed with elaborate gold-plated wood carvings. The panels depict a complex iconographic cycle that includes prophets, saints, and numerous episodes from the life of the Virgin. At the centre of the structure is an elegant niche housing the wooden statue of Our Lady of the Kingdom, depicted holding the Child Jesus and adorned with the attributes of royalty, the crown and sceptre, underscoring her symbolic and devotional role. An inscription bears the name of the artist, Giovanni Muru, and the date of completion, dated 1515. Inside the church, there is also a smaller altarpiece, attributed to the same artistic movement as the main altarpiece, and a series of 17th-century paintings placed along the columns of the nave. These canvases depict apostles and saints and enrich the building’s decorative apparatus, testifying to the continuity of devotion and artistic interventions in the centuries following the construction of the basilica.

A short distance from the parish church, along the main road, is the Oratory of Santa Croce. The current building dates back to the early 20th century and was constructed after the demolition of a pre-existing 16th-century building. The structure has a rectangular plan, and even from the outside, it is evident that the presbytery was built later, given its lower height compared to the main body of the church. The gabled façade has a square door, surmounted by an architrave and featuring a large arched window at the top. The bell gable is located on the right side, where there is also a secondary entrance. Inside, the plastered walls feature niches housing statues of saints, and an arch leads to the presbytery. Both sections of the church have exposed wooden roofs.

On the southern outskirts of Ardara stands the church of San Pietro. The original structure dates back to the 12th century, but only the apse has survived, allowing us to date the building to that historical period. The building we see today dates back to the beginning of the last century and is a rectangular structure with plastered exterior walls and a gabled façade bordered by two columns at the ends, a square door, and an arch above its architrave. The left side houses the bell gable and a secondary entrance with two small windows that allow light to enter the interior. On the rear wall, you can see the small apse built in Romanesque style nine centuries ago. The interior is a single room, while the gabled roof is supported by wooden trusses.

In the Ardara area, there are over 20 nuraghi and several tombs of the giants, distributed primarily in the northern part of the area and south of the town. Most of the nuraghi consist of a single tower, with only a few having a more complex structure. However, almost all are in precarious structural condition, and it is sometimes difficult to determine their original configuration without making assumptions based on the foundations discovered from time to time.