At the end of the 15th century, the Viceroy of the Kingdom of Sardinia, Juan Dusay, decided to strengthen Cagliari’s fortifications because of the constant Turkish incursions. He then had an antemurale and a moat built close to the Pisan tower of San Pancrazio, which was the only access, from the north, to the fortified town of Castello via a drawbridge. The intent was, in fact, to strengthen the northern side of the castle wall. The work, entrusted to Antonio Pestis and financed through a special grain tax, was completed in 1503, but the rapid spread of firearms soon made this type of defensive system obsolete, which was later modified by other interventions, such as the construction of the Altamira gate, “Porta S’Avanzada” or “di San Pancrazio.” The area in front of the tower later became a military prison and, in 1824, a prison hospital, a function it held until 1897 when it came under the attention of the Ministry of Education. From the early twentieth century it was used as a repository for archaeological materials.
By now incorporated into the larger Museum Citadel project, in the late 1980s, the premises were restored and allocated to a large museum space, now the responsibility of the Directorate of the National Archaeological Museum of Cagliari, which allows the original elements of the ancient structures to be appreciated.
