Located in the Marmilla region, Siddi has fewer than 1,000 inhabitants, but it gives its name to the basaltic plateau near which the Giara of the same name rises.
Formed by a 5-million-year-old lava flow, the plateau is covered by dense Mediterranean scrub and has preserved intact traces of the Nuragic population, including the spectacular Sa domu ‘e s’orcu tomb of the giants, made of basaltic blocks, and the Sa fogaia nuraghe.
Marmilla, in south-central Sardinia, low rounded hills and wide expanses interrupted by a vast basaltic plateau with sheer rock walls, dating from the Pliocene period and called Su Pranu. An evocative, unrepeatable territory: three hundred species of endemic flora, Mediterranean scrub, cork oaks, marshy areas, the typical horses. An area dotted with prehistoric settlements that confirm the continued presence of populations engaged mainly in agricultural activities. Nuragic-age monuments, Punic buildings of religious character, the important road artery of the Roman period that connected Cagliari to present-day Porto Torres. Since the decadence of the Roman Empire, populations were formed into neighboring settlements in the Middle Ages between the Giudicati of Arborea and Cagliari, from which they positively received cultural, artistic and stylistic and architectural influences. The majestic tomb of the giants Sa Domu ‘e s’Orcu extraordinary example of funerary architecture (Middle Bronze 1500-1300 BC approx.). Just in its vicinity was found the lithic ring referable to the Middle Neolithic, which always represents the oldest evidence of human presence in the territory of Siddi.
Among the different historical periods, the nuragic period is undoubtedly the most present in the Siddi countryside with numerous testimonies: nuragic villages, nuraghi with simple, complex, corridor plan and tombs of giants. Some settlement remains, ceramic fragments, and coins testify to the Punic presence while the Roman period is indicated by coins and fine tableware pottery; a belt buckle, Byzantine, can be dated to the 7th century. Siddi’s date of birth is not certain; it is assumed to be in Roman times. The earliest documents on which the village appears date back to the Middle Ages, in Vatican registers that record the collection of tithes in Sardinia for the years 1346-1350 and 1357-1359 also for the village then called Silli. In 1368 the village was granted as a feud by Peter the Ceremonious to a certain Merlot of Cagliari, who, however, never came into possession. Siddi was part of the Giudicato d’Arborea in the curatoria of Marmilla and followed its fortunes that saw the lands pass from feudal lords, lineages, baronies until in 1839 all the island fiefs including Marquisate of Quirra to which Marmilla then belonged were redeemed by the Savoy state for 18,215 Sardinian lire. In 1848 Siddi was included in the province of Isili, and in 1859 in that of Cagliari within the Lunamatrona Mandate. Siddi remained an autonomous municipality until 1927, then aggregated with Lunamatrona and autonomous again at the end of 1945.
