Attractions and Places To See around Caragnani/Calangianus - Top 20

😍

This church, dedicated to the Holy Cross (Latin: "Santa Croce"), derives its patronage from the cross on which Jesus Christ died. The veneration of the Holy Cross largely originates from Saint Helena, the mother of Emperor Constantine the Great (who, after his victory at the Milvian Bridge in front of Rome, recognized Christianity as a religion and ended the long period of persecution with the Edict of Toleration of Milan in 312). She made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land (Israel/Palestine) in the early fourth century and brought numerous relics back to Europe, including the "True Cross," on which Jesus Christ was crucified. Therefore, Helena is often depicted with a cross as an attribute. The Church celebrates the Feast of the Discovery, public presentation, and veneration of the Holy Cross—called the "Exaltation of the Holy Cross"—on September 14th.

The patronage of "Our Lady of the Snows" – which, in my experience, is not all that common – indicates that this church was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, but not, as is usually the case, associated with one of her classic feast days (such as the Name of Mary, the Nativity, the Assumption, or as Queen of the Rosary). Rather, the search for the origin of "Our Lady of the Snows" leads us far back in church history to the fourth or fifth century, and geographically speaking, away from Sardinia to the Italian capital. On August 5, 363, at the site where the magnificent church of Santa Maria Maggiore stands today, the so-called "Miracle of the Snows" occurred. That is, on that day, in the middle of summer, snow lay on the ground in the morning because Our Lady wanted a church dedicated to her to be built on that spot. She communicated this wish in a nighttime vision to a wealthy couple – who financed the construction – and to the Bishop of Rome, Pope Liberius. The Roman church has the rank of a patriarchal basilica (papal basilica), and is the origin of all churches and chapels bearing this patronage. In the liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church, the date of August 5, the day of the church's consecration (in the year 432 by Pope Sixtus III), is a "non-obligatory memorial."

The small church, located at 1000 meters above sea level, is surrounded by beautiful natural scenery. Rebuilt in 1994 on the remains of the 1900 building, it reflects the architecture of the ancient Gallura churches, with exposed granite. The feast of the Madonna della Neve is celebrated on August 5th.

A walk through the pretty and quiet Tempio Pausania is highly recommended.

The church dedicated to San Pietro Apostolo, cathedral of the diocese of Tempio-Ampurias, stands in the heart of the historic center. Built starting from 1200, the medieval granite building underwent various changes over the centuries, from the construction of the bell tower in the 16th century to the expansion works completed in 1827. The inauguration and consecration took place on June 2, 1839 by the bishop Monsignor Capece, who commissioned many of the marble furnishings of San Pietro. The church presents itself 2 St. Peter's Basilica in baroque style. It consists of a single nave with four chapels on each side. The very simple façade, slightly enlivened by the splayed portal and the two round-arched windows of the upper part, is deprived of its function by the much more complex side on the right side. with pediment openings, oculi decorated with mosaics and the articulation of the surface by pairs of strongly raised pilasters. The interior, in the nave, covered by a grooved barrel vault, has four chapels on each side and a semicircular apse where the wooden "choir" is located, the individual columns are deeper, forming almost a transept, to which the large raised and apsidal area of the presbytery is attached. The last restoration works date back to 2007: thanks to them, the vault has regained its ancient colors, with bright green tones that highlight the nineteenth-century marble furnishings in baroque-Genoese style, including the main altar, the pulpit, the baptismal font and some statues. The cathedral is equipped with a beautiful organ by Paolo Ciresa, dating from 1980, consisting of 25 registers and 1726 pipes. Source: https://comuneditempiopausania.it/cattedrale-san-pietro/

The Church of Santa Croce stands next to the cathedral. The bell tower of the cathedral itself, built between the end of the 15th and the beginning of the following century, forms a single body with Santa Croce. From the cathedral, you can access it through a small door to the left of the presbytery. It is very ancient, perhaps older than the cathedral itself, and certainly contemporary with the Church of the Rosary. This is evidenced by the rock left after the recent restoration, which bears the carved Greek letter Y (gamma), representing the number 3, the three persons of the Holy Trinity. This rock was the altar stone, reminiscent of Christ Rock Corner Head, on which the church was founded. It was built in the Romanesque style and renovated in the 16th century with a terracotta barrel vault. On the façade, you can admire a marble plaque from 1830 depicting the Confraternity of Santa Croce, which was housed in this church. It was an important, economically independent church. The brothers wore a white, hooded cloak that they pulled over their faces. They were affiliated to the Archconfraternity of the Gonfalone, founded in Rome, and as such enjoyed privileges granted to them by Pope Gregory, including religious week, religious theater, processions, popular festivals in city centers and rural churches, as well as aid to the poor, the sick, prisoners, and the settlement of disputes between rival families. The members of the confraternity played a very important role in the civic and religious community of Tempi. The confraternity's distinctive feature was to revive a symbolism and a cultural and religious activity that already belonged to the Templars and, like the Templar Order, was suppressed by the authority of the Church. In fact, on December 21, 1813, Bishop Monsignor Paradiso suppressed the Confraternity of the SS. Crucified for the excessive autonomy it displayed with regard to the provisions of the Church. From this point on, the church slowly declined, was practically abandoned, and gradually degraded to an oratory, a religious building with an ancillary function to the cathedral. In this church, the largest of the churches, the nobles of Tempio met with the clergy on April 29, 1679, to decide on the construction of the Capuchin Poor Clares Convent. Source: https://comuneditetempiopausania.it/chiesa-di-santa-croce/

This impressive mountain range is the highest in the region and offers an unmistakable panorama with its two striking granite peaks, Punta sa Berritta and Punta Balistreri. The rugged peaks contrast with the densely forested slopes, which form a green band around the bare peaks with chestnuts, pedunculate oaks, pines, firs and firs. As soon as you reach the summit and look as far as Corsica and the island of Asinara under clear skies, you will understand why so many hikers rave about this place. Your starting point could be the hiking car park below the summit, where the small Madonna della Neve chapel rises from granite rocks. From here you have six different trekking routes available. But maybe you would like to start the adventure in the town of Vallicciola and set off on a hike into the mountain range. Such a circular tour takes between two and a half and four hours, depending on the route. You should be alert on the way, because wild boars roam this area. It is advisable to avoid the forest and take to the road, especially at dusk. Would you like to take a break? Then find a place near the church where you can enjoy the peace and quiet and the view. And when you finally drive along the winding road that takes you into the mountains, you will find that the journey is an adventure in itself. The best time to tour the Monte Limbara mountain range is between May and October. But even in winter, the snow-covered peak offers a charming sight. You need to be sure-footed on your hike, because nature shows its wild side here. But that is precisely what makes this region so charming. So, lace up your hiking boots and set off on a journey of discovery!