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Porto Flavia is an abandoned mining site, located in the south-western area of Sardinia and belonging to the municipality of Iglesias – in the current seaside resort of Masua.
Despite being a mining site, it doesn’t feature any mines but was actually a port of embarkation for the material extracted from the mountain. It was built in 1924 by the Flavia family, who gave their name to this facility.

The actual harbour was built by digging two superimposed tunnels inside the mountain overlooking the sea: the upper one it’s where the ore came from, while the lower one was used as a warehouse connected to the very piers and merchant ships moored under the rock wall.
Between the two tunnels, there were nine huge silos, storing up to 10.000 tons of ore.
This ingenious layout revolutionized the system for loading minerals, thus replacing manual operations.

In the same area, there is also the Nebida lead-zinc mine, which is open to the visitors. It can be found in the same municipality of Iglesias, with its quaint village and several mining facilities facing the sea. This mine became operational in the mid-XIX century, favouring the birth of a village that still retains its original features, the square that housed the infirmary, the workers’ club, and the central management building. The administrative office building now belongs to private individuals and, despite the alterations, it still shows the denticulated frame that follows the entire course of the U-shaped building, and the neo-medieval style pointed arch windows.

The most extraordinary building is the Lamarmora laundry: it stands right in front of the sea, in a most spectacular spot, and was built in 1897 using exposed stones and overlapping volumes crossed by large arches; the building was completed with two high chimneys that clearly evoke the presence of the original calcination ovens. The latter facility is still visible at the foot of the laundry, on the very sea.

This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)