The site and excavations

The necropolis of Monte Prama is located at the base of the hill that bears the same name, at a distance of about 2 km from the town of Cabras, along the road that leads from San Salvatore to the town of Riola Sardo. After the accidental discovery of the site in March 1974 by peasants farming in the area, several excavation and recovery missions followed between 1975 and 1979, conducted by the Superintendency for Archaeological Heritage of Cagliari and Oristano and the University of Cagliari.
The first excavation was conducted in 1975 (under the direction of A. Bedini) and identified a dozen graves consisting of lithic cists (small stone-built coffin-like box) with square and circular pits, some of which are considered to be Nuragic ceramic artifacts.

In the second official dig, conducted between 1977 and 1979 (under the direction of C. Tronchetti), thirty more graves, aligned in a single row from south to north, were discovered, along with three more to the east. Immediately behind the graves, a segment of a ceremonial road with the same orientation was uncovered. The graves were dug in the ground forming a sub-cylindrical shaped well, with a diameter from 60 to 70 cm and a depth from 70 to 80 cm. The graves were covered with chalky sandstone slabs, with dimensions of 100 x 100 cm and a thickness of 14 cm. The individuals in these graves were male and female adults buried in sitting or kneeling positions. During the second excavation project no funeral goods were found, except for an Egyptian style scaraboide of uncertain attribution.
When they were discovered, the graves were covered by an accumulation of sculptural materials including over 5000 fragments of male statues and other sculptural elements, including models of nuraghe and betili made of arenaceous limestone. Thank to the recent restoration of these sculptural fragments at the Center of Conservation and Restoration of Li Punti (Sassari), 28 statues (all fragmentary) have been identified so far, representing 16 boxers, 5 archers, and 5 warriors. The boxers are bare-chested and are wearing short skirts and protecting themselves with a shield held in the left hand, while the right hand, on the other side of the shield, is wearing a glove. The archers are wearing a short tunic and a cape and have helmet with two horns from which emerge long braids. Their left arm, protected by a sheath and a glove, holds the bow. Their right arm, forearm, and hand project forward. Their legs are protected by greaves. The presence of fragments not attributable to the iconography described suggests the possibility that there might have been other different warrior figures as well.
Among the 16 models of nuraghe identified, some were multi-tower structures, including nuraghe complexes with 4 or more towers with walls and bastions, while others were represented as single towers. The betili, carved in sandstone, were of the so-called “Oragiana” type, which is cone-shaped with square grooves just below the ridge.
Almost certainly the reference models for these statues were bronze, of which the stone statues reproduced quite closely the character and style of the models.
On the basis of more recent studies about the Nuragic civilization, it is believed that the necropolis of Mont’e Prama might have been the burial space reserved for a family group dominant in the Nuragic society of the First Iron Age.

The restoration

Between 2007 and 2011, thanks to the financial support of the Ministry of Heritage and Cultural activities a General Program Agreement on Cultural Heritage and the Region of Sardinia, the restoration of the whole complex of statues was carried out in Sassari at the Center for Restoration and Conservation of Li Punti, under the coordination of the Archaeological Superintendence of Sassari and Nuoro. As part of the cultural project “Monti’e Prama Prenda’e Zenìa” (www.monteprama.it), the study and restoration of several recovered fragments was thus carried out in an attempt to reconstruct, even if partially, the statues.
The long process of study, documentation and restoration aimed in the first instance to the development of diagnostic tests to determine the composition and origin of the stone used, the state of preservation and the forms of surface degradation. This was followed by a detailed documentation with photos, graphics and videos. This activity, closely linked to the subsequent conservation and restoration work, was useful to reconstruct the working techniques and to identify the tools used by Nuragic stonemasons. It has been possible to demonstrate the use of bronze artifacts such as a subbia (pointed chisel), chisels with blades of different sizes, a tool like a scraper to smooth surfaces, spikes to carve the detail lines, the drill, a tool similar to a compass to get perfect circles, and perhaps a gradine (a toothed chisel).
The cleaning of the fragments was undertaken with the aim to remove the deposits of the layers of earth and carbonated ones, and to restore the legibility of the stone respecting the original surface. After consolidation works a very long and difficult activity was carried out, searching for the points at which the 5178 fragments were joined together in an attempt to reconstruct the statues.
The restoration work has allowed the identification of 28 male statues, including 16 boxers, 6 archers, 6 warriors; 16 models of nuraghe, of which 8 cases refer to monotower monuments, 3 to four-lobed complexes, 5 to poly-lobed nuraghe.

The museum exhibition

The project “Mont’e Prama Museum System” (Sistema Museo Mont’e Prama) consists of two stages of display, a temporary one, which opened March 22, 2014, and the permanent exhibition, on future display when the hall in the Museum of Cabras will be extended, in order to bring together the statuary complex in one museum.
The temporary exhibition is displayed in two expositive centers, the National Archaeological Museum of Cagliari, where the history of the statues is explained within the context of the history of the Sardinian and Mediterranean archaeology. The second expositive center is the Civic Museum of Cabras, where much more importance is given to the context and the history of the discovery within all the archaeology of Sinis.
In the Museum of Cabras, a selection of male statues, six in total (three boxers, two archers and a warrior), and four models of nuraghe are on display.
A virtual journey helps visitors to explore the entire sculptural complex of Mont’e Prama. This was made possible thanks to the work of the “Center for research and development and higher education in Sardinia” (CRS4), a research center set up by the Region of Sardinia. The team of Visual Computing CRS4 has indeed performed a high-resolution scan of all the statues and built a multimedia innovative, navigable through a totem touch screen installed in the main exhibition.
The second phase of the “Museum System Mont’e Prama” involves exposure of the entire complex of statues in Cabras, with the exception of a specimen by type that will remain at the National Archaeological Museum of Cagliari.
Since the current museum of Cabras does not have enough space, we decided to create an enlargement of the existing building, also to contextualize in a chronological and cultural overview the nuragic necropolis.
For the realization of enlargement an idea contest was banned in 2011, funded by the Region of Sardinia; the project “Between silence and light” of Architects Walter ED Dejana, Renata A.R. Flame and Simone Lumbau was the winner.
This project, now in the final phase, involves the construction of a large hall where the statues are in a dark space broken by a raking light that penetrates from a cut opened at the base of the walls. The exterior surfaces will be decorated with the technique of sand-casting, invented by the Sardinian artist Costantino Nivola.
The second phase of the “Museum System Mont’e Prama” involves exposure of the entire complex of statues in Cabras, with the exception of a specimen by type that will remain at the National Archaeological Museum of Cagliari.
Since the current museum of Cabras does not have enough space, we decided to create an enlargement of the existing building, also to contextualize in a chronological and cultural overview the nuragic necropolis.
For the realization of enlargement an idea contest was banned in 2011, funded by the Region of Sardinia; the project “Between silence and light” of Architects Walter ED Dejana, Renata A.R. Flame and Simone Lumbau was the winner.
This project, now in the final phase, involves the construction of a large hall where the statues are in a dark space broken by a raking light that penetrates from a cut opened at the base of the walls. The exterior surfaces will be decorated with the technique of sand-casting, invented by the Sardinian artist Costantino Nivola.