MONTELEONE ROCCA DORIA

Located in north-western Sardinia, in the geographical region called “Nurcara”, about 40 km from Sassari and 35 from Alghero, is the small village of Monteleone Rocca Doria.

The town was built on the top of the highest relief in the entire territory, which although it does not have a particularly significant elevation, about 420 meters above sea level, offered a panoramic point and a dominant position on the valleys below, and not by chance called precisely “Su Monte” (the Mount). This relief is located almost in the centre of a long-shaped territory located in a transverse position from north-west to south-east and with jagged borders, particularly the western and northern one with the territory of Villanova Monteleone.

In some places this border is marked by some edges of Lake Temo. And it is precisely near one of the lake stretches that the remains of a church have been found, “Nostra Signora di Curos” (Our Lady of Curos), which according to the legend was contested between the two towns in a sort of competition in which whoever, starting from their own parish church, would arrive first in Curos would incorporate this church into their territory, and it was precisely the inhabitants of Villanova Monteleone, perhaps with greater cunning or not fully respecting the rules of the pact, assigned themselves the sanctuary.

The lake covers a large portion of the territory of Monteleone Rocca Doria and extends as far as the eastern border, that is entirely with the territory of Romana, with which part of the border is marked by the Temo river, which supplies the lake. The last town that borders Monteleone Rocca Doria is Padria, with which it shares the entire southern border.

Although not large, the territory of Monteleone Rocca Doria has a great naturalistic and environmental variety. Not very high reliefs characterized by broadleaf forests and shrubs, mainly belonging to species that form the Mediterranean scrub, such as oaks and wild olive trees, alternate with flat lands mainly suitable for grazing, and with lake environments that form a unique microclimate hosting both flora species, such as willows, poplars, elms, and fauna species, such as ducks, but also more common birds and the rarer and more protected ones, such as birds of prey and the griffon vulture, which nests very willingly in these environments.

The town is located about 2 km from the state road 292, the road that leads to Alghero to the north and reaches Oristano to the south. Already from the crossroads that joins this road and leads to the town, you realize the altitude on which the town was built, in fact in just 2 km of road, obviously built with hairpin bends, there is an excursion of 150 meters of elevation.

Once you reach the top you find yourself in an almost fairy-tale village, all the corners are perfectly cared for, houses in exposed stone alternate with more modern buildings, flowers embellish every part of the town, and the paved streets take you back in time. In the eastern part there are the ruins of what was once the castle of the Doria family. Built in the second half of the 13th century, it was originally the fortress that the Genoese family used as a lookout point and defence of the village from external incursions. What remains today are parts of the city walls, the ruins of two rooms connected to each other with an arched door, the remains of the bases of some towers, and some cisterns that were supposed to collect rainwater.

From the castle, following the road westwards, you arrive at the so-called “Belvedere della Cava”, a panoramic point from which you can admire a portion of the lake and the woods. But you can marvel even more by following the panoramic road that encircles the entire mountain, stopping at various points, including the “Belvedere della Roccia della Regina”, to appreciate the breadth of the territory in its entirety and the valleys below, and understand why the relief of “Su Monte” was chosen to dominate the entire area.

To the north of the town is the church of Sant’Antonio, not far away is the tourist information office, and from there you can find one of the via ferratas much appreciated by rock climbing enthusiasts. Literature also finds space in this charming village, thanks to the literary park named after Grazia Deledda, a famous Sardinian writer who described the nature of these places linked to traditions and rituals of times gone by and which bring back very evocative memories to those who visit them.

Another important tradition of the village handed down over time has found its expression in the Bread Museum, a place where the cultivation of wheat is told from its origins to today, and where you can see examples of how to make bread with past and recent tools and techniques. Finally, in Monteleone Rocca Doria there are also several sports facilities, a refreshment point and also some services such as the post office.

The original name by which the village was known, and of which there is a first attestation around the middle of the 14th century, was Monteleone, formed by two parts, “Monte” (mount) and “leone” (lion), in reference to the mountain of Brancaleone Doria, the one who built the fortress on the mountain.

Only after about 500 years, in 1862, the name as we know it today is attested, with the addition of the second part “Rocca Doria”, also in evident reference to the Genoese family that allowed the birth of the village.

The economy of the town has always been linked to the territory, with two main activities which are agriculture and livestock farming. Until a few decades ago, the territory also allowed the extraction of limestone blocks, used as building material, from the various stone quarries still visible today.

In more recent times, alongside the more traditional economic activities, Monteleone Rocca Doria is trying to exploit the natural beauty and morphology of the territory to create an economy based on tourism and sport. The old stone quarries have now become walls where rock climbing is practised. Nature trails and paths allow you to go trekking and mountain biking with various levels of difficulty.

The lake offers various ideas for water sports, from kayaking to canoeing, ending with sport fishing. There are various events and demonstrations that attract numerous visitors who are perhaps just curious to spend a day at the lake, or professional fishermen who challenge each other in fishing competitions, all in the name of slow and sustainable tourism that favours contact with nature. With the intention of addressing an ever-increasing number of tourists and visitors, Monteleone Rocca Doria has various accommodation facilities that allow both catering and overnight stays.

Along the main street of the village is the parish church of Santo Stefano. It was built around the middle of the 13th century in late Romanesque style, and its current structure is made up of two structures that date back to different eras. The first structure from the 13th century is the one further north, while the one close to the road is the second structure, in Gothic style, built after 1536, that is, only after it become allowed to rebuild the village following the destruction that occurred a century earlier. The addition of the new structure was possible by demolishing the wall of the first small church, and replacing it with arches to connect the two structures obtained. Externally, the church has a facade in exposed stone blocks and it appears as a rectangular wall delimited by two pillars at the ends and a central one that divides the width of the structure into two parts. On the left side there is the square portal, while on the right side a small square window. The facade is embellished with a tympanum decoration on both sides. Inside there are two barrel-vaulted naves supported by arches, the nave on the left is lower and wider, while the one on the right is higher but narrower. Both naves end with an apse and each of them houses an altar.

In the northern part of the town stands the church of Sant’Antonio Abate, also dating back to the mid-13th century. After a recent renovation, the façade is now plastered, and with what must have been the original stone blocks that delimit the lateral ends and frame the arched door. The gabled roof has a bell gable in the centre. Above the door there is a large rose window with a very wide and decorated frame. Inside, the single nave leads to an apse that houses an altar with the statue of the Saint.

The archaeological finds in the territory of Monteleone Rocca Doria include several nuraghi, some in decent conditions of conservation, others with the remains of the villages that surrounded the tower. An interesting site is the one in the locality “Tudera – Sa tanca ’e sa Mura”. We are near what today is Lake Temo, and due to the damming of its waters this site is almost permanently submerged except during periods when the water level drops. And when it happens, the lake reveals an ancient village that included two churches dating back to the 14th and 15th centuries, the ruins of a nuraghe, the bases of rectangular structures that must have been buildings used as homes or warehouses, as well as remains of mainly ceramic artefacts and chips of worked stone.