The H-MAG 2024 Workshop will be held in Iglesias, a historical city in the south-western corner of Sardegna (Italy), rich in cultural attractions, centuries-old traditions and natural beauties punctuating the territory.
Below is useful information on how to reach Iglesias.
BY CAR
From Cagliari or from the Elmas Airport: follow signs for the SS 130 towards “Iglesias” and proceed until arriving at Iglesias. Follow the indications to “Iglesias Centro” (city center).
From Sassari: take the SS 131 towards “Cagliari”. After passing Sanluri, take the SS 293 towards “Samassi”. Proceed until reaching the SS 130 towards “Iglesias”.
From Olbia: take the SS 199 towards “Cagliari” and then take the SS 597 towards “Cagliari”. Then, take the SS 131 towards “Cagliari/Mores/Chilivani “. After passing Sanluri, take the SS 293 towards “Samassi”. Proceed until reaching the SS 130 towards “Iglesias”.
BY AIRPLANE + TRAIN
From the Cagliari Elmas Airport it is possible to easily reach Iglesias by train, thanks to the stop “Elmas Aeroporto” located within the airport. The train service is provided by Ferrovie dello Stato. It takes an average of 1h 7m to travel from Cagliari Elmas to Iglesias by train, over a distance of around 44 km. There are normally 20 trains per day travelling from Elmas Aeroporto to Iglesias and tickets for this journey start from € 3.70 when you book in advance.
The Iglesias train station is at walking distance from the city center and from the accommodations that will be communicated following registration for the event.
The H-MAG workshop will take place at the Electra Theatre.
TRAVEL EXPERIENCE
Science, history and nature combine perfectly in the Iglesiente. You’re encouraged to explore this region admiring its incredible landscapes and discovering the mining past of the island of Sardinia. Below, we list some of the main sites that can be explored.
The Electra Theater is located in Iglesias, in Piazza Pichi. It is a building that expresses the characteristics of Art Deco; the façade is characterized by a lowered arched apex bearing the words "Teatro Electra". Initially built as a cinema, it was renovated around the 1990s to revitalize the structure functionally and adapt it to laws and regulations in the field of public entertainment.
Porto Flavia is a seaport located in the heart of the Masua mining complex, in Sardinia, built in the first half of the 20th century and named after the daughter of the engineer Cesare Vecelli, who designed it. It is characterized by two overlapping tunnels that emerge into the cliffs in front of the Sugar Loaf, where nine silos were built to store the zinc and lead ore extracted from nearby mines.
The port was equipped with an innovative mineral transport and loading system, which reduced production costs and times, allowing the Belgian company Vieille Montagne to gain a strong market share. It is considered a technical and architectural marvel, but it also had a social and economic impact on the area and on the mine workers.
The Santa Barbara Cave is a surprising tourist attraction in the Iglesias area. It is famous for its dark brown tabular barite crystals that cover the walls, located between a layer of waxy limestone and yellow silicified dolomite, formations dating back to the Lower Cambrian, about 500 million years ago.
The cave is located inside the San Giovanni Mine and can be reached through a system of underground tunnels accessible via a train. After a journey of 700 meters, an elevator rises up a shaft to the cave entrance, located at the top of a spiral staircase. Inside, a majestic underground cathedral opens up, with rock formations that create fascinating colorful bas-reliefs, making the cave a magical place.
San Giovanni is one of the oldest mines in Sardinia, exploited in Roman and Pisan times, and perhaps even before, in the Nuragic era. The mine is notable for its modern mineral processing facilities, including one of the first mechanical washing plants and innovative flotation units.
Museum of Mining Art was founded in 1871 to preserve and display the mining culture and history of Sardinia and the world. It includes two sections: the Museum of Mining and the Museum of Mineralogy. The first exhibits machinery, equipment and tunnels used by miners from 1800 to today, demonstrating the techniques and challenges of mining activity. While the second collects approximately 3800 samples of minerals, rocks and fossils from all over the world, as well as archaeological finds from different eras, which illustrate the diversity and beauty of the products of nature and man.
Particular is the first room of the Mineralogy Museum (the "The bricks of the Earth" room), inaugurated in 2018, which introduces the visitor to the world of mineralogy through a multimedia installation that shows the formation of the geographical landscape of the Iglesiente through the four elements natural and geological time.
The Cathedral of Santa Chiara is the main place of worship in Iglesias, Sardinia, and the episcopal seat of the diocese of the same name. It is the only cathedral in the world dedicated to Clare of Assisi and is located in the historic center of the mining city, in Piazza Municipio.
The construction of the church began in 1284 in Romanesque-Gothic style by will of Count Ugolino della Gherardesca and was completed before 12881. The church became a cathedral in 1503, when the seat of the diocese was transferred from Tratalias to Iglesias. In 1736, it definitively regained the title of Cathedral. Located in the basement of the apse area of the Cathedral of Santa Chiara, the Diocesan Museum of Iglesias hosts finds linked to the history of the cathedral and liturgical objects from its Treasury, which are displayed alternately with other collections studied thematically.
The Museum of Costume and Traditions of Iglesias, inaugurated in 2019, houses an ethnographic and anthropological heritage collected and preserved for years by maestro Priola, acquired through donations from Iglesias families.
The museum preserves costumes, jewelery and household objects from the past. Visitors can admire everyday utensils such as baskets, vases, carved and painted chests, looms, millstones and presses. Furthermore, they can admire the traditional costume of Iglesias distinguished by social class or a person's condition at a particular moment in his life.
The photograph's copyright remains exclusively with the author:
1 Electra Theater: https://catalogo.beniculturali.it/detail/SARDEGNA/ArchitecturalOrLandscapeHeritage/2000232796
2 Porto Flavia: https://mineheritage-project.eu/rest/booklet/34000002
3 Santa Barbara Cave: https://www.iglesiasturismo.it/en/santa-barbara-cave/
4 Museum of Mining Art: https://www.iglesiasturismo.it/en/mining-institute-museum/
5 Cathedral of Santa Chiara: https://www.diocesidiiglesias.it/la-cattedrale-di-santa-chiara/
6 Museum of Costume and Traditions of Iglesias: https://www.iglesiasturismo.it/en/costume-and-traditions-museum/
Iglesias is known for its rich gastronomic tradition. Among the typical products that can be tasted in this area you will find particular breads and focaccias starting from the daily Civraxiu, a rustic naturally leavened bread, to Coccoi, a decorated bread for special occasions, not to mention the delicious Mustazzeddus, stuffed focaccias of tomato, basil and garlic, and Sa Panada, a savory pie consisting of a cracked pastry casing that may contain lamb, kid or pork meat and vegetables.
From Italian tradition, varieties of pasta cannot be missing, among which we find Fregola, a typical pasta prepared with meat or fish ingredients or simply vegetables, Culurgiones, fresh pasta ravioli filled with cheese or ricotta, Malloreddus, handmade semolina dumplings, and Spaghetti with sea urchins, seasoned with the pulp of sea urchins. And many other types of pasta, such as Maccarroni de busa, Tallarinus, Spizzu and Ghetta and Zappuleddus and Findellinus.
Among the second courses, Lamb stands out, cooked in various ways with fregola, egg and lemon, dried tomato and saffron, artichokes or potatoes, wild thistle, olives and more. Fresh Sausage for roasting and Ghisau, a meat dish with potatoes, tomatoes and herbs. The bucconi'e su rei, a mixed roast of various meats with aromatic herbs. While among the side dishes, Su Succu'e fa is an absolute must-try, a broad bean-based dish that is served on bread.
For lovers of sweets, not to be missed are sa Pastiglia, su Gueffu Nieddu, su Pistoccu Incappau, Parafrittu, Amaretti biscuits and Arrubiolus.
All accompanied by the wine and olive oil of which Iglesias boasts a quality production that has already been renowned since the nineteenth century.