| DOMUS DE JANAS  These
have been called “Fairies’ Houses”, whereas,
actually, they
should be defined as hypogean tombs.
Of very small size (about 80 x 140cm with an average height of
80-100cm) and excavated out of granite rock, they have 2-3 burial
places.
They have been discovered in different places, but especially
near prehistoric villages, in other words, the pre-nuragic Aeneolithic
period in Sardinia of the 3rd millenium BC.
On the same mounds where tiny funeral caverns have been found,
there are megalithic constructions belonging to the first type
of proto-nuraghe.
Access to the tomb was created by excavating the granite rock
and creating a small quadrangular or circular ante-chamber. Moreover,
a tiny quadrangular door, raised above the hypogeum by about 10-20cm
was inserted, perhaps to avoid stagnation of water in the tomb.
The most famous grottos are those beside Riso beach, the biggest
formed of two cells and a small, square entrance door.
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