Discover Masullas: Nature, Geology and Sardinian History

Nature, Plants and Geology

Masullas is located in the northern part of the Monte Arci Regional Park. If you would like to combine nature, geology and the local history of Sardinia, the town offers several different points of interest.

The Giardino Botanico del Monte Arci botanical garden opened in summer 2020 in a previously abandoned area near the Capuchin monastery. It is home to a representative selection of endemic plants of Monte Arci and is divided into four vegetation areas: woodland, Mediterranean maquis, garrigue and riparian vegetation. People with reduced mobility can access the garden via a ramp at the main entrance and then use a lift.

The Museo di Storia Naturale Aquilegia presents a chronological tour covering approximately 600 m², focusing on the geological and biological changes that led to the development of living organisms and their habitats.

The Parco Ossidiana is part of Sardinia’s Historical Environmental Geopark. It contains the largest obsidian deposit in the Mediterranean. The path to the main quarry is covered with thousands of small black rock fragments.

Su Columbariu also showcases the area’s striking geology: the steep rocky ridge is almost 100 m high in places and is characterised by caves, crevices and niches in the form of so-called tafoni formed from weathered trachyte. Sa Spendula de Cannas is a waterfall that forms on a 5 m-high slope; a temporary pond forms at its foot.

Historic Centre and Churches

The historic centre still corresponds to the medieval settlement around the churches of Santa Lucia and San Leonardo. Paved streets and houses with exposed-stone façades lead past the town’s workshops and shops. The Chiesa di San Leonardo dates from the first half of the 13th century; restoration work in 1977 uncovered the remains of an earlier sacred building dating back at least to the Byzantine period. The Chiesa di Santa Lucia dates from the 14th century and is the second-oldest church in Masullas after San Leonardo.

The parish church, now dedicated to Saint Sebastian, was formerly known as Madonna delle Grazie and Sa Gloriosa. It was built in the 17th century in the Late Gothic style; its façade was designed during the 17th-century remodelling in an authentically Baroque mixture of styles and materials. The Chiesa e Convento di San Francesco complex also dates from the 17th century. In the 1980s and 1990s, the municipality launched a long-term restoration project to fully restore the complex.

The Chiesa di San Leonardo is part of the Itinera Romanica project, a network of routes to Romanesque churches in Sardinia, Tuscany and Corsica. The church is therefore also part of a broader context of sacred architecture.

Museums, Festivals and Local Cuisine

The GeoMuseo Monte Arci is housed in a former 17th-century Capuchin monastery and displays mineralogical, lithological and palaeontological exhibits. The I Cavalieri delle Colline museum tells the story of the rural aristocracy of Masullas and Parte Montis within the broader context of the Sardinian nobility. The exhibition includes valuable works of art, weapons and documents from the collections of local nobles, reconstructions of contemporary traditional costumes, and precious old books.

At the Sa Gloriosa patron saint festival, held from 29 June to 3 July 2024, religious celebrations were combined with culinary offerings and live performances. At the first Sagra de Is Crogoristas in 2024, a type of pasta typical of Masullas was presented, handmade from durum-wheat semolina, water and salt. The Sagra de su Caboniscu was held for the 13th time in 2024 and offered tastings of typical dishes from Masullas, including dishes from the Sa Idda de is Cabonis e de Is Puddas tradition. On 6 November, the San Leonardo festival takes place in Masullas at the same time as the Sagra del melograno.

More destinations

Baradili, Narbolia, Putzu Idu, Paulilatino, Neoneli, Santa Giusta, Bauladu and Zerfaliu

To the higher-level travel overview: Oristano.