Territory
Oristano, an ancient city of mediaeval origin, rises on the vast plain of Campidano. By welcoming the inhabitants of the ancient city of Tharros, fleeing from the continuous Saracen threats, around the year 1000 the Byzantine village of Aristanis became the new capital of the Giudicato of Arborea (Courts of Arborea).
Its territory extends from the western coast of Sardinia to the most internal areas, and has been since ancient times a place favourable to human settlement: its hinterland, fertile for farming and ideal for grazing, its subsoil, extremely rich in minerals, and its brackish ponds, rich and fishy, have all together allowed the island's first inhabitants to develop an economically and culturally solid society.
If we add to all this the physical characteristics of the area, its central location and ease of communication, as well as the presence of the natural port of Mare Morto, we can easily understand the reasons for its development.
The excavation works on the Sinis peninsula brought to light artefacts that provided a clear idea of the extent of the trades that took place in that area over the centuries. Contacts with the other peoples of the Mediterranean are testified by the presence of objects belonging to different cultures physically distant from Tharros. The remains of the local Nuragic villages date from the middle of the second millennium, while the 8th century BC is the date of the Phoenician foundation. The city's history, however, is linked to the period of the Giudicato (“judicial period”), in which one of the most original and noble forms of history in the island developed in the city.
