Travel guide

Oristano
Oristano (31,169 inhabitants), situated in the High Campidano, was the
capital of the Judicate of Arborea and experienced in the Middle Ages a
significant urban and economic development. In 1478 it fell into the hands
of the Aragonese and lived a long period of decline which led in the XVII
century to an almost complete population drain. In 1718, along with the
entire Island, it became part of the Kingdom of Sardinia. Its rebirth in the
1900s led to demolition of the walls and, following promotion to main
provincial town, to its regaining a more modern aspect.Its historical centre
displays the ancient mediaeval urban pattern and preserves several
monuments of relevance: the mighty tower of San Cristoforo (1291), the
cathedral of Santa Maria and the church of San Francesco. Also
noteworthy is the Antiquarium Arborense, which houses exhibits dating
from the Neolithic to the Roman Age, mostly coming from the site of
ancient Tharros. The cathedral of Oristano, the largest in Sardinia, is
devoted to Santa Maria Assunta. Although it was founded in the XII
century, its current shapes are the result of its XVIII century reconstruction.
Housed inside are important objects of religious furnishing, including a pair
of bronze knockers (1228), a series of musical codes with remarkable
miniatures (XIII–XVI century), and a big processional silver cross (XV
century). In the church of San Francesco, the Christ of Nicodemus is
preserved. This is a wooden sculpture falling into the typology of Gothic
painful crucifixes. In the contiguous Piazza Eleonora rises the XVIII century
monument devoted to the famous judge, who at the end of the 1300s
proclaimed the Carta de Logu, a legal code which was long employed all
over the Island. Not far from Oristano, the cathedral of Santa Giusta is one
of the most significant Romanesque buildings on the Island. In the
outskirts of town it is possible to visit one of the most typical naturalistic
areas of Europe. These range from the ponds of Cabras and Sale Porcus,
ideal habitat for dozens of rare species of birds, to the stretches of sand
behind Mari Ermi; from the evocative beaches of Putzu Idu and Su Pallosu,
to the woods of Montiferru, let alone the fantastic Sinis peninsula,
protruding into the Mediterranean Sea for a length of about 10
kilometres.
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