Quartu Sant'Elena description and photos - Italy: Cagliari (Sardinia) (Topic)

Quartu Sant'Elena description and photos - Italy: Cagliari (Sardinia island). Detailed information about the attraction. Description, photographs and a map showing the nearest significant objects. The name in English is Quartu Sant'Elena.

Photo and description

Quartu Sant Elena is a commune in the province of Cagliari on the island of Sardinia. It is the third largest city on the island with a population of about 71 thousand people. The name of the city comes from its location relative to Cagliari - “quart” means four miles, and also from Saint Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine.

The first settlements on the territory of modern Quartu Sant'Elena date back to the Phoenician period, as evidenced by the finds in the towns of Chepola, Jeremeas, Is Mortorius and Separassiu. Ancient Roman artifacts were found near the Villa Sant Andrea, the cemetery of San Martino and in the town of Simbirizzi (several graves were found there).

In the 4th century, the territory of Sardinia was divided into several "giudicati" - Quartu, which included 14 settlements, went to Giudicato di Cagliari. During the reign of the Aragonese dynasty, the population of Quartu suffered from various epidemics, hunger and constant raids by Saracen pirates, as well as from the general state of decline experienced by the economy of the entire island. In 1793, French troops landed off the coast of Quartu, who intended to capture all of Sardinia, but the inhabitants of the city, led by Antonio Pisana, fiercely attacked the aliens and threw them back during a bloody battle. In 1956, Quartu Sant'Elena received city status.

From an artistic point of view, there are five interesting churches in Quartu. The most important is the church of Sant'Elena Imperatrice, built in 1589 and later rebuilt in the neoclassical style. It recently received the status of a basilica. Also worth seeing are the temples of Santa Maria Cepola, erected in the 11th century, and Sant'Agata. There is an interesting house-museum in the city "Sa dom'e farra" - a large peasant building from the 17th century, in which you can see furniture typical of a peasant house, as well as tools. In the vicinity of Kwart, you should definitely visit the nuragi - monuments of the ancient mysterious civilization.

The long, gently sloping coastline of Quartu overlooks the Molentargius Natural Park, home to pink flamingos.

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Topic: Quartu Sant'Elena description and photos - Italy: Cagliari (Sardinia).