Photo: gian luca bucci · CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Chiesa di San Lussorio

Romanesque church of the 12th century in Fordongianus, built above the early Christian crypt of the martyr Lussorio; visits by reservation only.

Ask the museum for opening hoursAdmission €5

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About the museum

The church of San Lussorio is a Romanesque building erected in the early decades of the 12th century; some scholars attribute its construction to the monks of the Abbey of San Vittore in Marseille. It stands on a low hill, facing a square surrounded by the “muristenes”, typical monastic dwellings that over the centuries also housed pilgrims, and it is remarkable for the variety of colours of its trachyte blocks. After a collapse in the 13th century the south side was rebuilt and the original barrel vault was replaced by a double-pitched roof with timber trusses; at the end of the 15th century the façade was altered with a Gothic-Catalan portal.

The monument lies about two kilometres from Fordongianus, on a Roman-age cemetery area linked to the ancient Forum Traiani, where the martyrdom of Lussorio took place. Lussorio, an official of the governor of Sardinia who had converted to Christianity, was tried in 304 AD under Diocletian in Karales and then beheaded at Forum Traiani. From the mid-5th century, with the spread of the cult and the town’s role as a bishopric, a basilica with a crypt was built on the same spot, giving access to the monumental burial of the martyr, later flanked by two mausoleums. These buildings fell into ruin and were replaced by the Romanesque church, which preserved the precious crypt. A side door leads down into the atmospheric underground route, enriched with mosaics and frescoes.