Coordinates | 41°03′01″N9°21′21″E / 41.05025°N 9.3558°E Coordinates: 41°03′01″N9°21′21″E / 41.05025°N 9.3558°E |
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Type | Monument |
History | |
Material | Granite |
Founded | c. 1800–1600 BC |
Cultures | Nuragic civilization |
Site notes | |
Excavation dates | 1966 |
Archaeologists | Editta Castaldi |
Condition | ruined |
Management | I Beni Culturali della Sardegna |
Public access | yes |
Website | Arzachena, tomba di giganti di Coddu Vecchiu (in Italian) |
Coddu Vecchiu is a Nuragic funerary monument located near Arzachena in northern Sardinia, dating from the Bronze Age. The site consists of a stele, stone megaliths and a gallery grave, and is one of the larger Nuragic Giants' graves on the island. The Nuraghe La Prisgiona is located nearby.
The site was excavated in 1966 by Editta Castaldi. [1] Among the artifacts recovered were pans, bowls and plates with comb decoration, as well as vases with bent necks, and vase fragments of the early Nuragic Bonnanaro culture, suggesting the monument was constructed early in the Nuragic period c. 1800–1600 BC. [2]
Coddu Vecchiu appears to have originally consisted of a cist, which was expanded during the middle Bronze Age c. 1800–1600 BC [3] and covered with a gallery grave and the ornate stele portal stone and megaliths characteristic of Giants' graves. [4] The stone forecourt consists of eleven granite stones arranged in a semicircle and measures about 12 meters (39 feet) across. It has been hypothesized that the semicircular arrangement of the stones may have been an attempt to harness the telluric current of the granite for rejuvenative purposes. [3] The central stele stands about 4 meters (13 feet) high and contains the entrance into the tomb. The gallery grave extends behind the forecourt, measures about 10 meters (33 feet) long, and was probably once covered by a tumulus. [2]
The upper portion of the stele was once taken by a local farmer and used as a plow, but it was soon recovered and restored to its place in the monument. [3] Coddu Vecchiu is among the most well-preserved of Giants' graves, and continues to be a popular tourist attraction.
The nuraghe, or also nurhag in English, is the main type of ancient megalithic edifice found in Sardinia, developed during the Nuragic Age between 1900 and 730 B.C. Today it has come to be the symbol of Sardinia and its distinctive culture known as the Nuragic civilization. More than 7,000 nuraghes have been found, though archeologists believe that originally there were more than 10,000.
Gallura is a region in North-Eastern Sardinia, Italy.
A megalith is a large stone that has been used to construct a prehistoric structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. There are over 35,000 in Europe alone, located widely from Sweden to the Mediterranean sea.
Giants' tomb is the name given by local people and archaeologists to a type of Sardinian megalithic gallery grave built during the Bronze Age by the Nuragic civilization. They were collective tombs and can be found throughout Sardinia, with 800 being discovered there.
This article describes several characteristic architectural elements typical of European megalithic structures.
The Nuragic civilization, also known as the Nuragic culture, was a civilization or culture on Sardinia (Italy), the second largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, which lasted from the 18th century BC up to the Roman colonization in 238 BC. Others date the culture as lasting at least until the 2nd century AD and in some areas, namely the Barbagia, to the 6th century AD or possibly even to the 11th century AD.
Monte d'Accoddi is a Neolithic archaeological site in northern Sardinia, located in the territory of Sassari. The site consists of a massive raised stone platform thought to have been an altar. It was constructed by the Ozieri culture or earlier, with the oldest parts dated to around 4,000–3,650 BC.
The Ozieri culture was a prehistoric pre-Nuragic culture that occupied Sardinia from c. 3200 to 2800 BCE. The Ozieri was the culmination of the island's Neolithic culture and takes its name from the locality where early findings connected with it have been found, the cave of San Michele near Ozieri, in northern Sardinia. The Ozieri existed contemporaneously with the Arzachena culture, sharing some similarities, and its influence also extended to nearby Corsica.
The Giants of Mont'e Prama are ancient stone sculptures created by the Nuragic civilization of Sardinia, Italy. Fragmented into numerous pieces, they were discovered in March 1974 on farmland near Mont'e Prama, in the comune of Cabras, province of Oristano, in central-western Sardinia. The statues are carved in local sandstone and their height varies between 2 and 2.5 meters.
The Nuraghe La Prisgiona is a nuragic archaeological site, located in the Capichera valley in the municipality of Arzachena Costa Smeralda in the north of Sardinia. It consists of a nuraghe and a village comprising around 90–100 buildings, spread across 5 hectares. Findings from this site are in many cases unique in Sardinia, particularly with regard to decoration and use. Due to the large extent and number of buildings the site is considered unique in North-East Sardinia. There is also some evidence for occupation during Roman and medieval times. The Giants' grave Coddu Vecchiu is located nearby.
The Arzachena culture was a pre-Nuragic culture of the Late Neolithic Age occupying Gallura and part of southern Corsica from approximately the 4th to the 3rd millennium BC. It takes its name from the Sardinian town of Arzachena.
The Pre-Nuragic period refers to the prehistory of Sardinia from the Paleolithic until the middle Bronze Age, when the Nuragic civilization flourished on the island.
The tomb of Bingia 'e Monti is a pre-nuragic archaeological site located in the municipality of Gonnostramatza, in the province of Oristano, Sardinia.
The necropolis of Anghelu Ruju is a pre-Nuragic archaeological site located north of the city of Alghero, Province of Sassari, Sardinia. It is the largest necropolis of pre-Nuragic Sardinia.
The Necropolis of Li Muri is an archaeological site located in the municipality of Arzachena, Sardinia.
The necropolis of Pranu Muttedu is one of the most important funerary areas of pre-Nuragic Sardinia and is located near Goni, a small village in the province of South Sardinia. The complex has the highest known concentration of menhirs and megaliths in Sardinia, two megalithic tombs and a Domus de Janas surrounded by stone circles.
The giants' grave of S'Ena'e Thomes is a nuragic-era archaeological site located in the municipality of Dorgali, in the province of Nuoro, Sardinia.
The Giants' grave of Su Mont'e s'Abe is an archaeological site located in the municipality of Olbia, in the Italian province of Sassari.
The Civic Archaeological Museum "Alle Clarisse" of Ozieri is one of the most important museums in Northern Sardinia. Since 2003 it has been transferred to the former Poor Clares' convent. Its showcases contain the most significant finds found in the municipal area of Ozieri: the materials on display date from prehistoric times to the Modern Age.