S’Elighe Entosu

The necropolis of domus de Janas S’Elighe Entosu is located near the southern border of the territory of the town of Usini (tn* a domus is a Neolithic tomb carved into rock called “house of the fairies”). The necropolis comprises 7 Late Neolithic hypogea, plus a poorly kept grotto and a tomb of architectural design. According to research funded by the University of Sassari and carried out by Dr Maria Grazia Melis, tombs III and IV have more monumental features than the others, also due to their long entrance corridor. During the dig in tomb II, a previously undiscovered incision was found, barely visible to the naked eye. It relates to the representation of a wooden roof. Parts of the archaeological deposit in the corridor of Tomb III have been investigated, although most of the materials were found outside. This includes remains of burials and grave goods, moved because of repeated reutilizations. Artefacts connected to the first use of the tomb are very rare, among which is a fragment of a marble statue. The tomb was used again in the Bell Beaker period (tn* the Bell Beaker culture is an archaeological culture named after the inverted-bell beaker drinking vessel used at the very beginning of the European Bronze Age. Arising from around 2800 BC, it lasted in Britain until as late as 1800 BC, but in continental Europe only until 2300 BC), then it was used in the Nuragic era (tn* Bronze Age, 1800-1500 BC), the Punic and the Roman. Inside domus III, in the centre of the main chamber, a fireplace is represented, sculpted on the floor. The columns carved from rock seem to hold up the flat ceiling of the hypogeum and represent wooden structures, that in the houses of the living would support the ridgepole of the roof. Moreover, the funerary chambers, that surround the central chamber, are elevated compared to the main floor level, so that their small entrance doors take the place of the windows in the representation of Pre-nuragic huts of the living. The stone slab that used to cover the entrance to the main chamber of the hypogeum is still near the monument. Tomb IV is distinguished by its long entrance corridor, of clear ceremonial function. The structure and the archaeological deposit were severely damaged because of repeated reutilization, particularly more recently. The tomb has a double pitched design above the entrance door, which must have covered the supporting structure of the huts of the living. Domus V of S’Elighe Entosu is sculpted in rock, has a double pitched roof, complete with ridgepole and lateral trusses and in the centre of the main chamber there is a reproduction of a domestic fire. One of the chambers of this tomb is decorated with representation of wooden architectural elements, such as the double pitched roof, half pilasters, and a scalariform decoration, unique to the territory of Usini and the nearby area.
Sources: “Usini, historical descriptive reconstruction of a village of the Logudoro region. From Prehistory to the first years of the 1800s. Story of the bandit Cicciu Derosas”, in Italian

Source: http://www.lapars.it/it/le-ricerche/contesti/selighe-entosu; http://www.lapars.it/sites/default/files/se1.pdf

http://www.lapars.it/sites/default/files/se1.pdf

“The project Usini – S’Elighe Entosu, in Acts of the XLIV Scientific Reunion of the Italian Institute of Prehistory of Sardinia. Prehistory and Protohistory of Sardinia”, in Italian, by D’Anna A., Melis M. G. Cagliari, Baruini, Sassari, 23-28 November, 2009, 2012, pp. 1345-1350