The Antica ‘Villa di Chiesa’ was founded during the 13th century by Ugolino della Gherardesca, a Pisan lord known for his and his sons’ sad end, narrated in the XXXIII canto of Dante’s Inferno. Ugolino’s lineage, the Donoratico, was part of the great families that had shared possession of southern Sardinia since the Pisan occupation. Villa di Chiesa was born as a settlement connected to the important mining exploitation that the Pisans operated in Sulcis.
In the 14th century, with the Aragonese conquest of the island, the name of the urban centre was ‘Iberised’, becoming ‘Iglesias’. During the Aragonese and Spanish rule, however, the mines were largely abandoned and it was not until the Savoy dynasty and industrial progress in the 19th century that they were exploited again. In fact, at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, the mines of the Iglesiente became
20th century, among the most important in Europe, attracting financial resources and a large workforce to the area. In the last decades of the 20th century, most of the mines in Iglesias and the whole of Sardinia have
were closed or reconverted into sites of industrial archaeology. Today, these very sites represent an immensely fascinating pole of attraction. Among them are:
– the village of Monteponi, one of the largest mining complexes on the island, which is located not far from the town, on state road 130;
– The Mining Art Museum, which narrates the culture, evolution and life of the mining centres of the Iglesiente area;
– The Salvaterra Castle, fulcrum of the Donoratico family’s control over the town and the nearby mines;
– The medieval cathedral of Santa Chiara and the Diocesan Museum;
– The cemetery, in particular its monumental part, studded with beautiful sculptures of the bourgeoisie, often linked to mining events in the area;
– A few kilometres away, there are other important sites of historical, cultural and scenic importance:
The temple of Antas in Fluminimaggiore, the Is Zuddas and Su Mannau caves, the Porto
Flavia and the Masua mining complex. Wild and enchanting is the coast of the Iglesiente, which runs from Funtanamare to Buggerru.
