The Phoenician Necropolis of Tuvixeddu, Cagliari

The sacred hill of Tuvixeddu in Cagliari is in the heart of the centre, home to thousands of tombs that were excavated into the rock. According to experts it is one of the largest necropolises in the Mediterranean. The burial chambers were created at the end of the 6th century BC when the Carthage invaders conquered Sardinia and made Cagliari their most important centre.

The first settlers in the area were Phoenician traders who arrived in the 8th century BC. As they started to bury their dead in Tuvixeddu, a practice that continued up until the time of the Roman Empire, a layered tomb was formed that offers a historical timeline telling the story of the ancient city’s past inhabitants.

Archaeological excavations began in the 18th century revealing horizontal rectangular tombs that were used by entire families. These were reached by following a vertical shaft that led down to the burial chambers whilst other tombs excavated directly into the walls of the rock were preceded by a sort of antechamber.

Some walls feature frescoes or drawings designed to protect the deceased from bad spirits or desecration. Examples include Ureo’s Tomb, decorated by a red cobra with two wings, and Sid’s Tomb with a figure, painted in blue, representing a young Carthage God, these tombs also have gorgons with their enigmatic grins. A recurrent theme in other tombs is the symbol of Tanith, one of the principal gods adored by the Phonecians.

A short distance away, along Viale St. Anvendrace, are monumental tombs from the Roman Empire. This street leads to the Sant’Antioco and the Grotta della Vipera (Cave of Vipers) which takes its name from the decorations on the facade that feature two serpents. The tomb, according to the Latin inscription, is home to a noblewoman, Attilia Pomptilla, who sacrificed her life to save her husband.

Unfortunately the hills of Tuvixeddu were used as a quarry in the 1950’s and are now at the centre of a legal battle to prevent a residential construction site being built whilst opponents are trying to have the area declared as a heritage site.