Milis Sacred Well

Inside the square of the railway station is an archaeological remain from the Nuragic period: The "Milis" Sacred Well was discovered in 1883 and excavated by the archaeologist, Lovisato in 1889. The work dates from the seventh to eighth century BC. The imposing structure faces south-east and has an axis of 13.5 m in length, from the threshold of the steps to the external border of the dome. Of the original forty steps leading to the source, only twenty-two remain today. The steps are roughly finished, each composed of several blocks of different sizes. The coverage of the well seems like a stairway ramp as seen from below and there are some huge shale monoliths leaning against gradually sloping side walls. At some point in time a water suction pump was installed on the top of the dome of the tomb, which served to fuel the steam locomotives, and later, the colony of railway workers. Today, the sacred well is in a good state of preservation. In 1884 the scholar Pietro Tamponi found a golden ring weighing 10 g, with the letters PV-VT.FE engraved in the gem. The first letters may indicate the donor, whilst the second letters may stand for best wishes: "(ut (ere) fe (lix)". The ring was purchased by the Archaeological Museum of Cagliari. In 1937 the superindent Doro Levi, along with his assistant Francesco Soldati, whilst effectuating excavations in the area, recorded in his report the finding of ''... a well preserved dagger , 0.139....'' 4.5 m from the wall, he also found a small but beautiful italic fibula, a long bracket and a button, 0.54 m long, both well perserved. In the same point, a light string braclet diam. m. 0061. The collection of objects was taken to the Archaeological Museum of Cagliari. The fibula was recorded as Chatreuse and dating from the V century BC. ''A reproduction of a frame from the same period and site is stored at the Superintendence of Sassari and Nuoro; this piece should be stored by the Superintendence of Cagliari and Oristano''. This ruin has been preserved for centuries due to its lonely and secluded site. The scholar Dionysius Panedda thought that perhaps, during the laying of the adjacent rail track in 1883, the circular area around the well was destroyed. This Nuragic well was exploited up until a few decades ago as a simple water supply for the seafarers.

The above historical data is taken from the book "Figari storie del Golfo e di Golfo Aranci" by Mario Spanu Babay. Publisher Taphros Olbia. Published in 2005. All rights reserved. May not be reproduced or distributed without express written permission from the author.