Historical sites

CODDU ECCHJU

Built to hold the dead of the nearby village of La Prisgiona, the ‘Giants’ Tomb’ of Coddu Ecchju dates as far back as 1800 BC. A series of upright stones with slabs laid across the top form a burial corridor, and a centrepiece stele — a sort of huge headstone — has a small opening where offerings were placed.

LA PRISGIONA

This complex contains the extensive remains of La Prisgiona village, first occupied in 1400 BC. Craftsmen’s huts are set around the nuraghe, a central keep with two towers that probably formed the fortified residence of village leaders.

CHURCH OF SAN SIMPLICIO

The 11th-century Church of San Simplicio in Olbia stands on the site of an earlyChristian church that was said to mark the spot where the bishop Simplicius was killed with a lance. The granite facade has a bell tower and a triple-mullioned window, while inside, beneath the altar, lie Simplicius’s relics.

OLBIA ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM

The extensive collections of Olbia’s archaeological museum chart the history of this region from prehistoric times to the 20th century.

The exhibits feature many finds from craft that sunk around the coast, and include a unique medieval shipwreck.

MALCHITTU TEMPIETTO

This hilltop Nuragic temple at Arzachena was built from boulders around 3,500 years ago. It contains niches and a shelf where offerings were presented to the deities. Ceramic artefacts were discovered in 1964, though broken by the roots of a tree growing through the floor.