Benetutti

On the eastern side of the Tirso Valley lies the town of Benetutti. Its name according to Casalis (Italian abbot and historian) was given by the Pisans because they realized that the thermal baths, present in the area, were "good for all ills," but, given its location in the Valley, it may also derive from the Latin "bene tuttus," meaning "well protected." Present-day Benetutti arose around 1100.

During the Aragonese and Spanish periods it had the fate of all the other towns in Goceano, which from the mid-1400s onwards were hit by epidemics and depopulation.

 

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THINGS TO SEE

Numerous nuraghi attest to the flourishing of a remarkable civilization, such as Carvoneddu, Orrile and Tolidda. The latter built near a vein of water gushing from a boulder, until the last century was the best preserved.

The Dolmen of Monte Maone, which is difficult to visit because it is on private land, is, unfortunately, in a state of disrepair, and is a hybrid between hypogeic and megalithic burial, in that it is a cave excavated, like the Domus, in the rock and with on its sides not slabs but dry stone walls, covered with a single slab.

Inside the garden of a small villa, which can be reached by skirting the cemetery, we find the Domus de Janas of Montrigu Lolloe and, continuing on the same road, still inside private land, we find the Necropolis de Sos Molimentos with several Domus, one of which has a double-pitched roof.

Very beautiful is the Necropolis of Luzzanas dating from 2500 B.C., which is located along the road from Benetutti to the baths of San Saturnino. Accessed only from above, it has a shaft entrance leading to a chamber with two doors, which lead to two tombs. Tomb number one has graffiti depicting a labyrinth with spirals, which probably represents the itinerary, full of pitfalls and not easy that the soul of the deceased must face before reaching the afterlife. A few hundred meters away is the nuraghe of the same name.

 

There are several hot springs that flow from various outcrops collected in a basin in the locality of San Saturnino that the Romans called "Aquae Lesitanae" because, in those vicinity, until the early Middle Ages, stretched the ancient city of Lesa. The temperature is about 41 °C (105,8 °F) and they are considered sulfurous and salsobromoiodic.

According to old beliefs next to each spring (there were over 100) there was placed a stone engraved with the name of the disease or anatomical part that those waters were able to heal, for example: sources of Anzu e sos Ogros, de sa Entre, de sos Nervios, de sa Gutta and de sas Dentes.

There are two thermal establishments present: the terme Aurora, with more than 40 years of experience in the service of relaxation and well-being, and the thermal establishment of San Saturnino, in the territory of Bultei, where there are vestiges of the Roman imperial era. There are fragments of columns of different shapes and materials, Latin inscriptions and a very special "Taepidarium," which testify to the remarkable importance of the settlement.

Adjacent to the San Saturnino Baths, founded in 1162 by the Camaldolese fathers, stands the church of San Saturnino, built of red trachyte blocks, a symbol of thanksgiving for prodigious healings due to the thermal waters. Other important churches are that of San Timoteo overlooking the square of the same name, the ancient small church of San Salvatore with a large bell gable, the church of Santa Croce, and the parish church of Sant'Elena Imperatrice built in 1618 on an older structure dating from the 1400s, which preserves by the Maestro di Ozieri (1500s Sardinian painter), a retable from 1549. She is the patron saint of the village, for whom the most important feast takes place in the period between August 18 and 20, with major cultural and folkloric events followed by "gosos," songs in the Sardinian language. In addition, the church of Santa Rosalia with its tall bell tower and a double flight of steps leading to the entrance makes a fine impression.

During the month of October, one of the most important festivals for the village is held in her honor, a beautiful folkloric event with the participation of the musical band and costume parade.

During Easter week, "Sa chida Santa" is celebrated. A recent institution is the event "Cantos, Sonos e Ballos," which takes place in July with the participation of folk-oriented groups from all over the world.

In the territory of Benetutti, hunting abounds and a good wine is produced, the Arvisionadu, a native white-berry vine, present in the national collections of the INRA in Montpellier and the CRA in Conegliano Veneto, whose spread in Sardinia is limited to sixteen hectares, which are located mainly in Goceano in the municipalities of Benetutti and Bono.

Benetutti is a town strongly linked to traditions. It preserves the artisanal production of bread such as "Coconeddas," which are spianate (typical flat Sardinian bread), circular in shape, soft and without crumbs, and "Bissau" bread, similar to carasau bread, but rectangular in shape. Typical handicrafts such as weaving, making wrought-iron art objects, and stone work ranging from hard granites to colorful trachytes, combining ancient traditions and innovative modernity.