Triei, Tomb of the Giants of Osono

The monument is located in the north of Ogliastra, in the Osono Valley, surrounded by hills and overlooking the plain of Ardali, up to the sea of Arbatax.
The burial, due to its unique characteristics, represents one of the most interesting monuments in Ogliastra.
Oriented to S/SE, it is located on a slightly sloping terrain; to recover the horizontal plane of the room, a mound was built - made of local granite and schist blocks and white limestone - which has the upper side of the main steps, due to the greater difference in altitude. Even the exedra is slightly sloping outwards.
The burial (length 22.65 m; max. width of the mound 16.50 m) is accessed through an arched entrance that leads into the burial compartment (length 10.25 m).
The burial chamber is built with granite blocks arranged on irregular overhanging rows. The roof has a flat band, seven large slabs remain in place.
The hemicycle of the exedra (arc 19.10 m), which has wall structures to support the mound on the back, is made with large granite orthostats, the monoliths are now knocked down or broken.
The materials found during the excavation make it possible to date the phases of use of the burial to the middle, recent and final Bronze Age; a phase from the third century AD is also documented. 2 km away from the tomb, the Bau
Nuraxi nuraghe stands.

History of excavations
The grave was excavated in 1989-90 by Mario Sanges.

Bibliography
M. Sanges, “The Bau Nuraxi Nuragic Complex”, in Cultural Heritage Week: 10 years of activity in the province of Nuoro, Nuoro, Archaeological Superintendence for the Provinces of Sassari and Nuoro, Nuoro Operations Office, 1985, p. 89 ff.;
M. Sanges, “Tomb of the Giants of Osono”, in Archaeology and Territory, Nuoro, Ilisso, 1990, pp. 169-172.
C. Nieddu, “Tomb of the Giants of Osono”, in C. Nieddu (edited by) Archaeological Sites of Ogliastra, Tortolì 2006, pp. 56-57.

How to get
From Tortolì, take the SS 125 to the N of the city, crossing Lotzorai. After about 7 km, turn south on the SP 55, directly to Triei. After about 6 km, you will find the municipal road that leads to the sources of Osono and Bau Nuraxi on the road; you travel 4.2 km, until the end of the paved stretch and continue - after passing the Bau Nuraxi nuraghe - for another 3 km. Leave the car in the square of the source of Osono and take a dirt road that branches off for a few hundred meters before reaching the open space of the springs; the tomb is clearly visible on a modest hill.