Li Lolghi

I visited this in march 2003 and was fortunate not to have to pay any entrance fee or parking for the site. What was dissapointing though, was the litter scatterred all over the car park and around the monument.
A big dissapointment too was that someone had taken a dump in the chamber itself. This is the first time I’ve ever encountered this anywhere and hope its not a regular occurrence.
Obviously in the out of season times the place had the look as if no-one looked after it, but dont let that stop you going.
Still, apart from a few human offerings, the site is set in a wonderfull area, great view and very prominent. Although obviously repaired, the main Fascia stone is still a magnificently carved example. I wondered wether that maybe the seperate panels were painted originally. Who knows, but a nice though.

Li Lolghi has the most terrific reveal. Walking up a little track past the biglietteria (ticket booth) you turn a corner and suddenly it’s there like an old friend standing on a hilltop waving ‘ciao!‘

Because it stands at the top of a little rise it looks even bigger – and it’s pretty damned big to begin with. Li Lolghi’s stele is more tapered in shape than arched and the chunk missing at the top simply adds character and charm.

Indeed it’s so spectacular that I actually shivered in delight when I pressed myself against its pink lichen covered warm flatness.The slabs that form the monument’s curved arms are equally flat and reminded me of the squary flatness of some of the stones at Callanish.

Once again this is a sign posted site with a car park and a small booth from where you can buy tickets for the monument. On my visit, I had the good fortune to find a guide here who spoke very good English and had recently spent 3 months in Newbury.
If the service is available, pay the extra Euro for the guide, they are usually very knowledgeable and generally keen to speak English, they also carry folders containing illustrations, details of finds and general information about the sites.
Li Longhi is a fascinating site situated on a prominent hill. Like Pasceradda, the tumulus remains intact and the monument has undergone some restoration. The path to the monument is only short and you approach it from the front. The first thing you notice is the stelae, it’s huge and it’s broken. The repair job on the stelae reminds me of my own attempts to repair things at home. They’ve just taken the huge lump that fell off and clagged it back on, it’s pretty unsympathetic but it works and restores the stelae to it’s original height. The stone to the right of the stelae is also a replacement.
The passage is a little confusing until you realise that this monument developed in 3 stages. The first stage of the monument was the construction of a dolmen, the remains of which form the rear of the passage. The dolmen was constructed, during the period of the Bonannaro Culture using rough stone slabs placed on the original ground surface. The second stage of the monument was the construction of an allee couverte or passage; this was dug into the bedrock. The walls of the passage were constructed using a mixture of large slabs and dry stone walling, a mound/tumulus/cairn of stones was also constructed at this point. The final phase of the monument was the addition of the horned façade.
Within the passage, the dolmen was separated from the rest of the monument by a 
blocking slab and a bench, as at Pascaredda.
There is only one capstone in situ on the passage, my guide informed me that the archaeologists have speculated as to whether the passage was actually capped with removable wooden planking to allow access. What intrigued me was what happened to the capstone of the dolmen. I wonder if it was reused in the construction of the passage or perhaps in the horned façade of the monument.
My guide also informed me that Roman and Greek writers had witnessed and recorded how the Tombi were still being used when they had visited Sardinia. There are written accounts describing people sitting on a bench-like structure attached to the horned façade of the monument whilst rituals took place within the area defined by the facade.
Li Longhi is well worth a visit, when combined with a visit to Cuddu Vecchiu and the Necropili di li Muri. It provides insight into the development of the wonderful Tombi dei Giganti in this part of the island.

Li Lolghi has ample parking, a wooden information and ticket hut (we’d paid at Li Muri so just picked up our guide leaflet) which has the usual range of info, postcards, ice creams and drinks – including beer!

The slope leads up to the tomba – orientated to face south east – and again was originally an allée couverte as at Coddu Vecchiu, extended circa 1300 BCE.

The giant stele has been broken at a 45° angle and repaired, and has relief carvings on it; the stone slabs of descending height on either side mark out the esedra.

Looking through the portal, you can see along the funeral corridor to the remaining capstone and shelf at the end, before the earlier tomb.

The rear of the monument is gently fenced with posts and rails, and viewing platforms are provided. The whole thing is a massive 26 metres long!