Image Details

Photo by Sandra Davis Lakeman: The Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, Comune di Barumini, Cal Poly

Burnished by the setting sun, the late-14th-century B.C. Red Nuraghe of Arrubiu—a cyclopean stone structure consisting of five linked towers clustered around a central tower—is one of the largest Bronze Age structures on the island of Sardinia. As many as 30,000 nuraghi (singular, nuraghe) once dotted the island, the earliest built around 1750 B.C. A number of nuraghi, like the Red Nuraghe, have been found in clusters, either connected by stone corridors or enclosed by walls. The ancient Sardinians probably constructed these structures as homes to protect themselves from hostile neighboring clans competing for arable land.