TORRALBA

Torralba is a town in northwestern Sardinia that is part of the Logudoro region and more precisely of the subregion called “Meilogu”. Its territory is predominantly hilly, the highest relief is Mount “Sa Cuguttada” which reaches 540 meters of elevation and is located in the eastern part of the territory marking a stretch of the entire eastern border that Torralba has with Mores.

The southern border is instead with the territory of Bonorva, and is marked for a small stretch by the “Rio Mannu”, the most important river in the entire area and which, continuing always south but towards the west, marks almost the entire border with another town, Giave.

In the western part of the territory we find the second highest relief, “Monte Mura”, a plateau that exceeds 500 meters of altitude and overlooks in a dominant position towards the two neighbouring towns on that side, Cheremule and Borutta. Finally, the northern border of Torralba is entirely with the territory of Bonnanaro.

Two reliefs are worthy of note in the territory of Torralba, which are actually two extinct volcanoes. The first, “Monte Oes”, is located east of the town, which stands right on its slopes, and thanks to the characteristics of the volcanic substrate makes its soil fertile and rich in mineral substances, essential for the development of plants, especially fruit trees that are found on its slopes.

The second extinct volcano, “Monte Austidu”, is a few kilometers from the town and has been exploited over time as a quarry for the extraction and processing of pumice stone. The territory of Torralba has vast flat expanses, with small watercourses that flow there, and the most important, the Rio Mannu, which crosses it in a large portion in the southwestern part.

These expanses are dotted here and there by some towers, there are as many as thirty of them, and of many you can appreciate the circular shape and the good state of conservation, while others are majestic examples of buildings over 3500 years old, so important that they gave this area the name of Valle dei Nuraghi, and the monumental complex of Santu Antine, considered by many to be a Nuragic palace, is the most significant example.

Seen from above, the town of Torralba has the shape of a crescent with the historic centre in the westernmost part that developed near the parish church of San Pietro, and is characterized by not very wide streets, paved with flagstones, while the expansion of the town towards the east has seen a more regular development of road networks and buildings.

The town is crossed entirely by what until the 1970s was the state road 131, the most important road artery in Sardinia, and which in its route touched several towns. Today the state road 131 has another route but in memory of its past, the main street of Torralba was named after the person who wanted it built in the past, and is currently Via Carlo Felice.

It is along this street that Torralba has the most points of interest, including schools, sports facilities, bars and restaurants, the main square, the museum, a church, and even the cinema. On the western outskirts of the town there is a beautiful fountain and the old wash house, and not far away a camper parking area equipped to accommodate travellers who travel with these vehicles.

The name of the villa of “Toralba” appears for the first time in a document dating back to the mid-12th century, while later spellings such as “Turalba”, or “Toralva” are found, up to today’s “Torralba”, which however has an etymology that can be traced back to the two Latin words “Turris” and “alba” which mean white tower with obvious reference to the Nuragic towers scattered throughout the territory, which, according to some, seen from certain perspectives in some periods of the year must have been of a light, almost white colour.

The economy of Torralba is based mainly on agriculture and livestock farming, particularly sheep and beef cattle. The construction sector is represented by several companies, and the mining activity of the pumice quarry of Monte Austidu offers reasonable work although not continuous, with extractions that take place only in certain periods.

The craft sector is not very developed even if some companies carry out iron working.

A particularly developed sector is tourism, which attracts thousands of visitors every year thanks to the natural and archaeological monuments, who can also benefit from the hospitality services in accommodation facilities for catering and overnight stays.

The parish church of Torralba is that of San Pietro. It is on the western outskirts of the town around 1615 near a pre-existing medieval structure dating back to the 13th century, originally dedicated to Santa Maria. The style is Gothic but also Renaissance and the renovation works have given us a simple façade with two oblique lateral buttresses, and a square door surmounted by a tympanum and a rose window. The roof is gabled with a stone cross on top. The lateral bell tower has a square plan with a pyramidal top. A few steps lead to the interior, consisting of a single central nave divided by arches into three bays that open onto as many lateral chapels on each side. The altar and the altarpiece are made of wood and inside it houses the statues of various saints and precious paintings.

Along the main street in the centre of the town, there is the church of Santa Croce. Its construction dates back to the second half of the 17th century. Externally it is a massive structure with a façade framed at the ends by stone blocks, also repeated on the square door and on the large arch and rose window above. The side walls are supported by buttresses that also support the two internal arches that divide the single internal nave into three bays. There are no side chapels.

On the northern outskirts of Torralba, just outside the town, stands the church of Sant’Andrea, which dates back to the Romanesque period, dated to the 11th century, although some theories date it back to three centuries earlier. The curious two-tone structure is composed of two buildings, of which the older is in dark trachyte blocks, to which a second structure of light limestone blocks was later added. It is accessed from an arched door in the side wall, and inside you can see the distinction of the two rooms built in later periods and connected by an arched passage.

In Torralba there are also several country churches, some of which are in good condition, others abandoned and reduced to ruins, such as those of San Giorgio and Santa Vittoria. Three are still used as places of worship.

About 2 km from the village, on a plateau called “Mura”, stands the church of Sant’Antonio Abate. Dating back to the 17th century, today’s sanctuary takes the place of an older church that must have been the religious centre of a village that no longer exists. The building appears as an imposing construction in exposed limestone blocks. The façade is gabled with a bell gable that dominates the top, a rectangular window and underneath a large square door framed between two columns and a tympanum. Externally you can see the buttresses that support the internal arches that divide the single nave into bays from which two side chapels open.

About 3.5 km from the town of Torralba stands the church of Nostra Signora di Cabu Abbas, in the locality of the same name, and dating back to the medieval period, built in Romanesque style around the 12th century and with additions the following century. The structure is in limestone blocks with some inserts of trachyte blocks that give a touch of darker colour. The exposed stone facade is decorated with 4 semi-columns and small arches that follow its entire width and continue into the side walls. The door is square and faces the interior composed of a single nave divided by three arches into bays with a vaulted roof in dark stone.

The third of the country churches is that of the Holy Spirit, about 3 km from the town. It dates back to the 17th century and was built near the remains of a nuraghe that takes the same name as the church and the town where it is located. The structure is in exposed stone with limestone blocks alternating with trachyte. The façade is decorated with two semi-columns with capitals at the ends and extends laterally towards two buttresses, which also characterize the side walls. The tympanum covers the entire width of the façade and the decorations are also found in the architrave that surmounts the entrance door that leads to a single internal nave.

From an archaeological point of view, the town of Torralba is often linked to the Nuragic palace of “Santu Antine”, and obviously it could not be otherwise given the majesty of this complex, having such importance that it almost overshadows the other nuraghes present in the area, even if well preserved, such as the nuraghes “Ruju”, “Longu”, Culzu”, just to name a few.

One of the best-preserved Dolmens in the entire area is the one known as “Su Crastu Covaccadu”, which in English means “the covered stone”, an important example of megalithic culture that is made up of large blocks of trachyte covered by a large stone slab weighing several tons, which shows the impressive construction skill of the men of that time.

Also in the area known as the Valley of Nuraghi, in Torralba there are the remains of a tomb of the giants called “Sa Pedra Longa” (the tall stone), of which you can still appreciate the stele, a large sculpted monolith of an elongated shape inserted vertically into the ground, and the base of the exedra that constituted the original monument.

It is enough to note how this expanse has been called, Valley of Nuraghi, to understand the importance of this territory and the treasures it contains, witnesses of mysterious eras thousands of years old, for which rational interpretations cannot always be given.