The sanctuary of Abini is situated in a pleasant valley in central Sardinia, strategically placed along a natural transhumance route, still used by shepherds, in the territory of Teti (Nuoro). It is one of the best-known nuragic cult sites due to the incredible number of high quality bronze votives have been found there. The site comprises a village of numerous huts and a sacred spring within an enclosure. In the second half of the 19th century, the discovery of a rich votive hoard brought the site to the attention of scholars and it was explored between the end of the 1800s and the early 1900s. Excavations were undertaken in 1981 and from 2000 onwards. The Superintendency has carried out maintenance and clearance on the site, together with interventions aimed at re-reading the site from an architectural and functional point of view. Firstly, a study was made of the dumps of material from the 19th century excavations, including clandestine ones, which had left huge spoil heaps that were hindering the reading of the structures. The materials recovered from the spoil heaps included bronze and, above all, pottery fragments, which the old excavations had ignored in favour of retrieving the precious metal ex-votos. The pottery forms comprised jars, bowls with inverted rims, some of which decorated, carinated bowls, often with plastic decoration, jugs and _askos-type vessels with impressed decoration and “reverse elbow” handles with plastic decoration, dating to between the final Bronze Age and the early Iron Age. Ashlar blocks from the original temple structure were recovered, easily recognisable as the temple was built in local volcanic stone. The study of these blocks has suggested a reconstruction that finds close parallels with similar nuragic cult buildings such as the sacred spring of Su Tempiesu at Orune. The monument, probably destroyed in the 19th century by the excavations, consisted of a circular room with a false vault covering and a vestibule with a pitched roof. The spring was situated inside a large elliptical _temenos_, with a bench/counter in the eastern sector and a floor of large cobblestones. The water from the spring was collected in two small wells and reached the exterior of the enclosure via a small channel. The site’s sacred function was confirmed by finds of fragments of stone basins, stone offering tablets with holes in them and lead for fixing the ex-voto onto them, and the fragments of a miniature nuraghe. The site was in use from the final Bronze Age until at least the 6th century B.C., as attested by the bronze handles with palmette decoration and several anthropomorphic ex-voto made of coarse pottery. The settlement area situated south-west of the enclosure extends along a low plateau that slopes down towards a small torrent. The complex is constituted by tens of huts, in some cases single and others grouped in _insulae_. The huts, some of which have substantial sectors of standing walls preserved, are notable for their size, height, and internal arrangement: dividing walls, niches and counter-benches. The fragments of a black gloss footed cup of Punic production which imitated Greek types were found inside one of the huts with a niche, attesting the prolonged occupation of the village.

The site of Albini is a nuragic village with a sanctuary. The cult space is defined by a large elliptical enclosure inside which there is a cavity for water collection that, together with what remains of the apsidal part of the structure, is all that survives of the main monument. Excavation took place inside the enclosure with the aim of clarifying the situation left by previous investigations (those carried out by Taramelli, and more recent ones) and to render this important part of the complex accessible. Cleaning and removal of the vegetation revealed parts of the structure that had not been completely visible for some time, such as several alignments of stones interpretable as walls containing the colluvial detritus that was deposited in the area at a time when the wall must have been much lower or absent. Given the construction technique of the curtain wall, which in some points is not typical of nuragic architecture, and considering that the drawings left by Taramelli indicate the northern parts were missing, it is clear that the curtain wall of the enclosure is only original in part. The excavations recovered a limited amount of material. A moderate number of bronze artefacts were found, principally the blades of votive swords, rivets for swords and daggers, a button with a conical head and spherical beads. Two blue glass paste beads were found, one cylindrical, the other circular of the “a occhi” type. The nuragic pottery included the remains of jars with cordon decoration, carenated bowls, and vessels with upside down “elbow” handles. Decorated fragments were rare. A small quantity of historical pottery, relating to the later phases of the monument’s use, including the modern period, were found in the upper layers.

This season, excavations took place outside the sacred enclosure in order to clarify the nature and layout of the rooms situated in the area in front of it. The removal of the surface layer revealed the perimeter wall of a circular structure (structure 2). In correspondence with the entrance, facing west, there was a regular surface made of stones resting on levels containing little archaeological material but in which blocks of trachyte stone from the destruction of the fountain were visible, suggesting this was a modern re-organization of the area. The finds from the surface layers included an amber bead, a large pin, and a dagger with a triangular blade and simple tang with two rivets. The curved blade of a dagger, a bracelet of thin bronze wire, and a fragment of a lead pendant in the shape of a dagger with a swastika hilt were found in the eastern part of the room. was At a short distance from structure 2 a small circular room (3) was identified. This had been the object of illegal excavations in recent years (post 2000). The structure’s stratigraphy was formed by layers of black and greyish soil, rich in charcoal and burnt and calcinated faunal remains, while ceramic finds were rare. During the excavation of structure 3, another room (structure 4) was uncovered. It had a sub-oval plan and its perimeter wall abutted that of room 3. A layer of very dark soil in its interior was rich in archaeological material, in particular carinated bowls, bowls with inverted rims, large bowls, jars with cordon decoration and ribbon handles. Some of the jar body sherds showed that the containers had been mended with lead ties. In the north-eastern part of the room by the perimeter wall there was a concentration of daggers with triangular blades (six), possibly a deliberate deposition.

The excavations concentrated on structure 4, uncovered in 2014, and the area outside it. Numerous faunal remains, mainly pig, pottery fragments from cups, bowls with inverted rims, ovoid jars and carinated bowls, were found inside the room in a layer of dark, soft soil. In one case, a bowl found upside down and near a jar may have been its lid. A bronze fibula was found in the area where most of the metal finds were recovered by the north-eastern face of the wall. The underlying layers only produced a small amount of archaeological material, including a fragment of poured lead destined for mending? a votive sword whose negative imprint is still visible in it. The excavation of the area north of structure 2 produced numerous pottery fragments, part of a bronze votive sword, some slag, and an amber bead. The investigation in the area surrounding the hut identified a series of horizontal stone slabs arranged at the base of the circular structure’s perimeter wall. Outside of room 4, the excavation of the eastern area revealed a substantial accumulation of large stones, probably part of the collapse of the room’s wall facing. During the removal of the collapse, pottery fragments, including ribbon-handles decorated with impressed dots and incised herring-bone pattern, were found together with an awl and a bronze dagger. There was a layer of light coloured, compact soil to the south-west of the room, up against the wall. This contained abundant pottery, including a carinated bowl and several fragments of slag from bronze smelting