Fashion Model: nuraghi

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Ancient Carthage—Here I Come!

When I returned home last year to visit friends and family in Italy, I travelled throughout the island of Sardinia, exploring the ancient ruins of the Phoenicians and Carthaginians.

During my exploration, I discovered the amazing fashion sense of the ancient Nuraghic men, who lived thousands of years ago, dwelling in honeycomb structures and sporting—what we would consider today—very avant-garde styles.

As I return home this Sunday, I plan to continue my research on Phoenician and Carthaginian menswear with a 4-day excursion to the ancient city of Carthage, the ruins of which lay just outside of Tunis—the capital of Tunisia.

Tunisia is a country in North Africa, which is situated just 95 miles (155km) from the coast of Sicily, Italy.

(One of my favorite Tunisians, by the way, is Oussama Mellouli—gold medalist in the 1500m free at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.)

Some scholars attribute the name Tunis to the ancient Phoenician goddess, Tanit, although there exists an array of explanations.

While researching the culture and dress of the ancient Phoenicians and Carthaginians, I hope to meet up with modern Tunisian designer Salah Barka, with whom I have been corresponding.

For the past year, I have been studying Arabic, so I hope it comes in handy! If not, well, fortunately I can rely on some French!

Photo Oussama Mellouli, GNU Free Documentation License at Wikipedia.
Photos Nuraghic figures & sketches, Copyright Angela Demontis 2005, used with permission.
Remaining photos of Phoenician and Nuraghic sites, Copyright Men’s Fashion by Francesco.

The Nuraghic “People of Bronze” Come Back to Life

Last year in September, I set out to explore the ancient colonies of the Phoenicians and Carthaginians, which have been unearthed along the coast of Sardinia.

At that time, I also visited many Nuraghi sites—the ruins of the ancient inhabitants of Sardinia, who lived 4,000 years ago in a honeycomb of structures that surrounded a central tower.

These Nuraghi dwellers have been nicknamed the “People of Bronze” after the numerous bronze mini statuettes, which have been discovered throughout the island.

During my travels, I picked up a fascinating book entitled the People of Bronze (il Popolo di bronzo in Italian) by Angela Demontis, who describes to minute detail the styles and fashion of the Nuraghic men.

As a fashion designer with an extensive knowledge of ancient history, Angela has succeeded in deciphering Nuraghic menswear, which she sketches throughout her book:
Nuraghic Fashion: Part 1
Nuraghic Fashion: Part 2
Nuraghic Fashion Part 3

Now for the next two months, the public will have the opportunity to see the bronze statutes in relation to the life-size mannequins, which have been reconstructed in the typical Nuraghic dress.

The exhibition will be held at the Archaeological Museum of Cagliari from April 15-June 15.

In Angela’s own words, “the People of Bronze have finally come back to life!”

Photos Copyright Provincia di Cagliari.

Sardinian Nuraghis Rock!

After a fantastic tour of the nuraghi Su Nuraxi in Barùmini, I continued driving north, just past Oristano, to Nuraghe Losa in Abbasanta. (See photo to the left.)

The construction of this nuraghe transpired in the period between the 18th-15th centuries BC. A little over half of the 20-meter central tower is standing, along with its surrounding wall.

After a brief visit, I ventured further north to Torralba on my way to Alghero to see Nuraghe Santu Antine, which is typical of many Nuraghic towers, only better preserved. The construction of this Nuraghic village occurred between the 18th-15th centuries BC.

This 17-meter high tower is surrounded by a wall, which is adjoined to interlinking dwellings that encircle the wall. Within the wall, there is an impressive courtyard with a well and entrances that lead to assorted corridors and staircases.

After meandering through the different Nuraghic villages and structures below, be sure to check out the next article on the Nuraghic men’s sense of style! Nuraghi knew how to rock!

Nuraghe Santu Antine

For more reading on Nuraghic men and their fashion, please refer to the following articles:

Nuraghic Fashion: Intro
Nuraghic Fashion: Part 1
Nuraghic Fashion: Part 2
Nuraghic Fashion Part 3

Photo, slideshow & video Copyright Men’s Fashion by Francesco.

The Nuraghic People, "Su Nuraxi" & UNESCO

After several days of exploring Cagliari and the surrounding areas, I rented a car and set out to delve deep into Sardinia’s rich, distant past—the Nuraghic civilization, which has produced my favorite menswear designers of ancient times!

The Nuraghic people, who most likely arrived to Sardinia from the Italian peninsula, have inhabited the island for thousands of years. Over time, however, these settlers began staking out tribal territories, which they guarded with cone-shaped stone towers called nuraghi. Obviously, the ancient Nuraghic tribes had become masters of architecture and engineering.

At the center of the Nuraghic village rose a tall defensive tower, which was often surrounded by smaller towers that were interlocked to round, cone-shaped dwellings with thatched roofs—also called nuraghi. It is estimated that over 8,000 of the preexisting 30,000 nuraghi are still standing today.

The first nuraghe that I visited was near Barùmini on the way to Oristano. Su Nuraxi has been designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. This spectacular series of beehive-like structures was actually a Nuraghic village, the construction of which dates back to the 11th century BC.

At the center stands an impressive 20-meter high tower surrounded by four defensive towers, which, in turn, are enclosed by seven more. Fifty interlocking dwellings encircle the towers. A labyrinth of tunnels and corridors run throughout the towers.

After taking a stroll through the Nuraghic village below, be sure to go on and check out the fashion sense of the Nuraghic men who built it. Nuraghic men rocked—literally!

Nuraghe Su Nuraxi