Orosei, Tower of Sant'Antonio Abate and Palatzos Betzos

The

historic capital of the Southern Barony, Orosei is located almost on the plains, on the slopes of a volcanic hill on the valley of the Cedrino river. The area has been inhabited since prehistoric times and was important in Roman times, as the seat of port ports that remained active even in the Middle Ages.
Today, Orosei is a busy tourist town, which owes its fame to its beaches but preserves an intact and particularly significant historic center.
Already in Roman times, sources report that in the Gulf of Orosei there was a Roman station, 'Fanum Orisi', which later became 'Urisè' and later Orosei. A Portolano, dated between 1250 and 1265, represents a “post quen” term for the creation of the seaport, first included in the dominions of the sovereign of Arborea, then passed into the hands of the Aragonese.
In the town there is the medieval heart of the town, dominated by what remains of the Giudicale castle: the restored tower and part of the medieval wall. Around the keep is the Palatzos Betzos district, consisting of old houses and a series of palaces from the 16th to 17th century. One of these, already housing the “Royal Carabinieri Barracks”, was recently used as a museum.
The tower, which takes its name from the adjacent church of Sant'Antonio Abate, included in the same enclosure, also dates back to medieval times. With a square plan, it has undergone heavy changes over the centuries. More important is the church of Sant'Antonio, made of volcanic stone, with a single aisle covered in wood, with a cycle of frescoes from the 14th century.
The environmental context The historic capital of the Southern Barony, Orosei is located almost on the plains, on the slopes of a volcanic hill on the Cedrino river valley. The area has been inhabited since prehistoric times and was important in Roman times, as the seat of port ports that remained active even in the Middle Ages.

History of Studies
For Orosei, it is worth mentioning the volume edited by Alfredo Ingegno entitled “The historic center of Orosei: history, urban planning, architecture, works of art”, published in 2001. Franco Betucchi and Salvatore Rubino's 2004 text on central Sardinia from the region of Bosa to the Gulf of Orosei.

Bibliography
F. Fois, Castles of Medieval Sardinia, edited by B. Fois, Cinisello Balsamo, Amilcare Pizzi, 1992, pp. 191-194; C. Zedda-G.
Santoro, Orosei, history of a medieval city, Nuoro, 1999;
The historic center of Orosei: history, urban planning, architecture, works of art, curated by A. Ingegno, Viterbo, 2001.
F. Betucchi-S. Rubino, Central Sardinia: from the Bosa region to the Gulf of Orosei, Milan, 2004;
G. Serreli, All the Castles of the Four Kingdoms, “Darwin. Notebooks”, n. 1 (July-August 2006), pp. 104-109.