38°59′05″N9°00′57″E / 38.984685°N 9.015860°E /38.984685; 9.015860
 Archaeological site of Nora, with the Spanish tower in the background. | |
  Nora Shown within Sardinia | |
| Type | Settlement |
|---|---|
| History | |
| Cultures | Phoenician civilizationRoman civilization |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | yes |
| Condition | ruined |
| Management | I Beni Culturali della Sardegna |
| Public access | yes |
| Website | Pula, area di Nora(in Italian) |
Nora (Ancient Greek:Νῶρα)[1] (Nuras in the mediaevalSardinian language) is an ancient pre-Roman andRoman town on a peninsula nearPula, near toCagliari inSardinia.[2]
In hisDescription of Greece,Pausanias, a Greek-Roman geographer of the second century, narrates the mythological foundation of the city: "AfterAristaeus, theIberians crossed toSardinia, underNorax as leader of the expedition, and they founded the city of Nora. The tradition is that this was the first city in the island, and they say that Norax was a son of Erytheia, the daughter ofGeryon, withHermes for his father."[3]Solinus wrote that it was named Nora after Norax.[4]
Early on the area was occupied by a village of indigenousSardinians, but soon became an emporium and then a Phoenician city. Especially after the conquest byCarthage, Nora flourished, as (along withBithia nearChia) it was the first stage on the sea route from Carthage to Sardinia and its most important city, Cagliari.[5] TheNora Stone, aPhoenician inscription found at Nora in 1773, has been dated by palaeographic methods to between the late 9th century and early 8th century BC,[6] and has been interpreted as referring to a Phoenician military victory and conquest of the area.[7]
After a period of domination byCarthage, the town came under Roman control afterthe conquest of Sardinia in 238 BC. The city is mentioned in theTabula Peutingeriana, a Roman-perioditinerarium.It went into decline from the mid-5th century AD after the Vandal conquest of Sardinia. The island was taken by the Eastern Romans in 535, who ruled it for 300 years. According to theRavenna Cosmography, after the Arab conquest of Carthage in 698 the city lost its economic function and became a simple fort (Nora praesidium).[8] Nora appears to have been abandoned during the 8th century.[9]
Itstoponym, however, remained in the name of acuradoria (main administrative division) ofJudicatus of Caralis at the beginning of the second millennium.
Because the southern part of Sardinia is sinking into theMediterranean Sea, a substantial part of the former town is now under water.[10] A similar fate has befallen nearbyBithia, now completely submerged.
Nora was an important trading town in its time, with two protected harbours, one on each side of the peninsula. Several different building styles can be seen in the excavated buildings.
The ancient ruins of Nora include an open-air museum and the remains of atheatre, occasionally used for concerts in the summer.
A significant part of the town situated on land belonging to theItalian Army has not been excavated.
