The church that you can observe on the rise is dedicated to St. Helen. It is a single-nave church, the earliest layout of which can be attributed to the 11th century. Built of local travertine, there are clear traces of the Romanesque style; of the original facade, an ancient doorway remains, now walled up. The partly destroyed apse gives way to the present entrance. Of St. Helena we know that she was born in Bithynia, Asia Minor, between 250 and 255. When her son Constantine, called the Great II, became emperor in 320, she was elevated to the rank of empress. In old age, she traveled to Palestine where, so the legend goes, she would find the cross of Jesus Christ. Patron saint of dyers and much venerated in Sardinia, her feast day occurs in Sadali on August 18 with a large influx of faithful. In contrast to St. Valentine, considered the pronubal saint, St. Helena is considered scoiadora, that is, she who dissolves engagements. Peculiarity of her feast is Sa cursa de su pannu; which was run on horseback, on foot and by donkey.
