Ittiri and the Sassarese Region
The Historical Region of Sassarese (Logudoro Turritano)
The Sassarese (Su Tataresu) is an agropastoral region in northern Sardinia characterized by volcanic hills, wide plains, and significant medieval and prehistoric monuments. The local language, Sassarese (Turritano), is a Romance tongue derived from a Tuscan-Corsican base with Ligurian, Iberian, and Logudoro-Sardinian influences.
Overview of Ittiri
Ittiri (Ìttiri in Sardinian) is a large hillside town of pre-historic origin situated on the southern slopes of Mount San Giovanni in the western Logudoro plateau. Its economy combines agriculture (renowned for Spinoso Sardo artichokes), sheep-and-cattle pastoralism, ironwork, trachyte stone sculpture, textile crafts, and food processing. It holds the formal title of City (Città), granted by presidential decree in 2000.
Origins & History: Attested in medieval documents as Ithir or Ithiri, the name is associated with the ancient village of Cannedu (“place of reeds”), suggesting an origin from Iter in cannetum (“road through the reed bed”). Inhabited since the Neolithic (domus de janas known locally as Coroneddos) and Roman times, medieval Ittiri was the capital of the Coros curatoria within the Giudicato of Torres. It later became a Baronia shared with Uri under Aragonese control.
Notable Figures:
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Giuseppe “Beppe” Pisanu (born 1937): A prominent Christian Democrat and center-right Italian politician who served as Minister of the Interior from 2002 to 2006 and Chairman of the Parliamentary Antimafia Commission.
Key Sites & Cultural Highlights:
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Parish Church of San Pietro in Vincoli: Originally built in the 13th century (possibly over a Roman temple), extensively remodeled in Catalan-Gothic style in 1775, and given a Neoclassical trachyte facade between 1881 and 1895 by architect Salvatore Calvia Unali.
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Church of San Francesco & Franciscan Library: Founded in 1610 alongside a Franciscan monastery, housing an 80,000-volume historical library (Biblioteca Francescana) transferred from Sassari in 2012.
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Giovanni Andrea Alivesi Civil Hospital: A historic 19th-century hospital founded through a bequest by Colonel Giovanni Andrea Alivesi Virdis (who died in 1881).
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Abbey of Nostra Signora di Paulis: A 1205 Cistercian abbey founded by Judge Comita II of Torres within a marshland (padulis), featuring semi-ruined medieval structures and associations with the mysterious hermit-monk Piero Cau (Su Padre Biancu).
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Sa Figu Archaeological Complex: A multi-period site featuring a corridor protonuraghe, a megalithic semi-circular stone enclosure (interpreted by some as a prehistoric sky-burial exposure platform or “Tower of Silence”), an extensive domus de janas necropolis spanning the Ozieri, Monte Claro, and Bonnanaro cultures, and a notable prehistoric bone figurine of an aulete (flutist).
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Musellos Necropolis & Nuraghe Majore: A group of rock-cut hypogea containing a Paleochristian carved cross, alongside the mixed-type Majore nuraghe featuring standing tholos chambers and an isodoric masonry terrace.