Holiday apartment in Silanus among frescoes and nuraghi

Holiday apartment in Silanus among frescoes and nuraghi

When planning a holiday apartment stay in Silanus, you will encounter several clearly distinct aspects of the town: sacred architecture, Nuragic structures, Sardinian poetry, textile arts and a landscape ranging from forests to cultivated land. When planning your days, you can therefore prioritize according to your interests, whether you are looking for architectural forms and frescoes, craft traditions or sweeping views. The places and themes provide specific points of reference for this.

Churches and archaeological evidence

The Church of San Lorenzo was built around 1150 by Cistercian monks and is considered an example of Romanesque architecture in the Silanus area. Its single-nave structure has a rectangular floor plan and a semicircular apse facing east. It also features a fresco cycle from the 13th and 14th centuries by an unknown artist, depicting San Lorenzo, San Biagio, San Benedetto and San Cristoforo.

The Santa Sabina archaeological complex comprises a Nuragic tower, a sacred tholos well, a giants' tomb and the old church of the same name. The church dates from the first half of the 11th century. Its floor plan, with three apsidal spaces and a central dome, recalls late Roman and Byzantine cellae-trichorae layouts. At the Santa Sabina sanctuary, Mass is celebrated every year in the afternoons for nine days from the second week of September.

Poetry, textile arts and virtual insights

Sa Domo de sa poesia cantada is a museum dedicated to improvised poetry in the Sardinian language. Visits are available by reservation or for self-guided tours during the summer opening hours; guided tours and educational activities are offered.

Since 2020, the “Il Filo della Memoria” exhibition has also been accessible through a virtual tour featuring information panels, photographs, audio and video material. The “Il Filo della Memoria” collection comprises carpets, tapestries, blankets, towels and saddlebags made entirely in Silanus. The exhibition also presents two historic looms as well as traditional tools for spinning and shearing.

Nuraghi and landscape areas

Nuraghe Orolio, also known as Madrone, has a twelve-metre-high granite tower with two superimposed chambers whose tholos roofs are exceptionally well preserved. It stands on a hill more than 400 metres high northeast of Silanus, about one kilometre from the town centre. The surviving mastio has a truncated-conical shape.

Nuraghe Corbos lies seven kilometres from Silanus between the plateau of the same name and the plain of Ottana. Its approximately twelve-metre-high, truncated-conical tower is made of medium-sized basalt blocks. From there, the chimneys of the Ottana plain, the mountains of Sarule and Gavoi, and the peaks of the Gennargentu can be seen.

In the mountainous areas around Silanus, forests of holm oaks and downy oaks dominate. In the lower-lying areas, the landscape opens out into olive groves, vineyards and cultivated land. The traditional Silanus pastry s’aligu is made from honey, almonds and orange peel and wrapped in characteristic lemon leaves. When choosing your accommodation, these contrasts can help determine your preferred focus: nature, cultivated landscapes, archaeology or regional craft traditions.

More places for your planning

For further travel planning: Orani, Ottana, Onanì, Lollove, Santa Lucia, Sorgono, Mamone, Lodè.

For the overview of the wider travel area: Nuoro.