Bacu Abis between mining history and hiking trails
Accommodation in Bacu Abis
Bacu Abis is a workers’ settlement of central importance for understanding the origins and history of Sardinia’s coal basin. The town combines mining history, sacred traditions, architecture, and paths through the landscape of southwestern Sardinia. For travelers who want to discover Sardinia not only through its coast but also through its industrial and everyday history, it offers a distinct thematic perspective.
Mining and rationalist urban planning
The technical modernization and construction of Pozzo Emilio between 1914 and 1916 made the construction of a miners’ village necessary. In the 1930s, Bacu Abis became an important example of rationalist urban planning. Between 1936 and 1938, the settlement was reorganized according to a project attributed to Gustavo Pulitzer-Finali.
Pozzo Castoldi is also part of this historical context. From 1941 onward, the shaft was used to return air in order to ventilate the galleries where the miners worked. The Chiesa di Santa Barbara complements the townscape with a single-nave layout, a large oculus in the façade, exposed stone masonry, a continuous portico, and a square bell tower.
Santa Barbara and the Cammino Minerario
Sa Festa Manna di Santa Barbara is a recurring celebration in Bacu Abis. It takes place in the Chiesa di Santa Barbara and is connected with the mining history and traditions of the area. At the 64th Santa Barbara celebration, the program included a procession from the Chiesa di Santa Barbara to Pozzo Castoldi along the Cammino Minerario di Santa Barbara.
The Cammino Minerario di Santa Barbara also shapes the hiking opportunities around Bacu Abis. CMSB Stage 29 from Portoscuso to Bacu Abis is listed as a challenging 18.9-kilometer hiking stage with a stated walking time of 6 hours and 30 minutes. Following its route along the volcanic cliffs of Sardinia’s southwestern coast, it reaches the Bacu Abis mine.
CMSB Stage 30 leads from Bacu Abis to Iglesias. It is the final stage of the Cammino Minerario di Santa Barbara and leads back to the starting point of the entire route.
Archaeology, museums, and landscape
In the immediate vicinity of Bacu Abis lies Nuraghe Seruci, a ruin. Also located around Bacu Abis are the Parco Archeologico Monte Sirai, an ancient site, and the Museo della Civiltà Mineraria di Genna Luas, a museum. The Miniera di Monteponi is also a museum in the vicinity of Bacu Abis. Together, these places offer different perspectives on archaeology and mining history without reducing Bacu Abis to a single subject.
Further destinations in the surrounding area provide orientation within the landscape: the Passeggiata panoramica di Nebida is a viewpoint, Spiaggia Fontanamare and Spiaggia di Acqua Sa Canna are beaches, and the Grotta di Santa Barbara is a cave.
Further destinations in the region: Masainas, Musei, Piscinas, Terresoli, San Giovanni Suèrgiu, Maladroscia, Narcao, Monteponi.
More about the region: Carbonia-Iglesias.
