The shrine dedicated to the Virgin of Itria rises in the Lidana plateau, not distatne from the S.P Gavoi Mamoiada in the territory of Gavoi. The plan of the shrine is more or less circular in shape, combining the perimeter with the small houses, muristenes, designed to accommodate the faithful on the days of the novena and feast. The present church of “Sa Itria,” which replaces a very old little church also dedicated to N. S. d’ltria demolished in 1903 was built by the people of Gavoi in the years 1903-1904 and consecrated on June 19, 1904. In memory of the reconstruction of the church and its consecration there is a marble plaque inside. There are no written sources regarding the description of the old church. What is known is the result of stories passed down orally. It was told that the church was entirely covered with ivy, had two small square windows on either side of the small altar and a small ro- round window placed on the front door. It was made of small granite stones (perda minuja) and mud. The roof was made of wooden planking and reeds, with unbaked brick tiles manufactured in Lodine. The walls were of white lime, and until the last years of the 1800s the color was light blue. What remains of the old church are, the century-old Greek cross perimeter, still partly evident at certain times of the year, a bell and a small statue of Our Lady. The bell and statue are now preserved inside the present church. The bell is very important because of the inscription on it that attests to the year it was cast: 1543. This inscription dated 1543 is the only written evidence of the 16th century existing in the territory of Gavoi. The area surrounding the Sanctuary is of great archaeological importance; there are several nuraghi, domus de jana, tombs of giants and a nuragic village recently brought to light: the village “Soroeni.” Among the archaeological beauties has main relevance the menhir habitually called “sa perda de Sa Itria,” a carefully worked monolith, still erected in its original position, rising 3.60 m from the ground. Verisimilarly, the presence of the menhir and the archaeological area so close to the sanctuary could support the thesis that a Proto-Sardinian sanctuary stood on the site, later replaced with a Christian church at the time of the conversion to Christianity of the Barbaric peoples in the 6th-7th centuries by Eastern monks.
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