Iglesias

Iglesias is located in the heart of the Sulcis-Iglesiente. This village, which is still partly embraced by its medieval city walls, together with Carbonia forms the capital of the province of Carbonia-Iglesias. After the Romans had left the area and the Pisans reopened the mines, Iglesias was founded in the 13th century by count Ugolino della Gherardesca. The area used to have a prosperous mining industry. Important minerals, such as manganese, marble, iron, copper, lead, zinc and silver were extracted here. The mines were the wealth of the Iglesias area for many decades. Nowadays, most of the mines are closed. You can still visit the mines of San Giovanni di Domusnovas and Monteponi with a guide.