The vast Mercedari complex stands on the limestone hill where the Catalan-Aragonese settlement arose in 1323 before Cagliari’s surrender three years later.
The oldest part is the sanctuary, which still retains the original presbytery and tower above, as well as the cross vaults and ogival arches that are the earliest example of Catalan-Gothic architecture in Sardinia.
The limestone elevation is modern but incorporates the portal from the church of San Francesco di Stampace, demolished in 1875.
Inside is the simulacrum of Our Lady of Bonaria, venerated by all Sardinians and, in particular, by seafarers.
The basilica, planned as early as 1704, was built over a very long period of time and with variants derived from different projects, first and foremost those of Piedmontese engineers, until the final resumption of work in 1910, which led to the consecration of the church fifteen years later, despite the fact that it was not yet finished. A portico in front leads into the interior, which has a nave and two aisles with a transept and chancel, and is laid out lengthwise according to the traditional basilica model. In addition to paintings of mainly devotional interest, there is an interesting statue of Our Lady of the Fighter by Francesco Ciusa, made between 1936 and 1938. Inside the first room of the museum are collected archaeological evidence from Bonaria Hill.
Frequented in pre-Nuragic times and known to the Phoenicians, the hill housed a late-Punic and Roman necropolis.
There is also a reconstruction of the history of Bonaria Castle and the Order of the B.V. Maria della Mercede, present in Sardinia since the early 1300s.
In the corridor on the cloister are votive paintings mainly of a seafaring theme, dating from the 18th-19th centuries, and votive offerings donated by faithful who escaped slavery or shipwreck.
Along the corridor the upper part of a barrel-vaulted rock-cut cistern used by the friars of the convent until the beginning of the last century is appreciable.
The second room displays the oldest and most valuable naval models of which the sanctuary is rich (there are currently about 150).
They constitute an important anthology of the history of naval art, from the age of galleys to that of the introduction of steam and the innovations adopted by more modern ships.
The model ships on display in the museum are almost all of fine craftsmanship.
Also visible in this same room are the mummified bodies of some members of the Alagon family, who died of the plague in 1605 and were buried adjacent to the shrine. Finally, we find the silver anchor offered by Queen Margherita in 1899 for the successful outcome of the North Pole expedition led by her son, the Duke of Abruzzi, with the ship “Stella Polare.”
The third room displays the shrine treasure and precious sacred furnishings offered by sovereigns and illustrious personalities.
These include gold crowns donated by King Charles Emmanuel I and his consort, rich vestments offered by noblewomen, and gifts from Popes Pius XI and Paul VI. During the 1943 bombing, the basilica suffered damage especially to the dome, which was restored after the war when the eighteenth-century factory was resumed and finished.
