L’Oratorio delle Anime a Massama, antica Marsima, potrebbe essere situato lungo la “via maxima”, una strada romana che collegava Tharros e Forum Traiani (l’odierna Fordongianus).

Questa chiesa ha origini altomedievali con interventi successivi in epoca romanica (XIII secolo).

La struttura ha una pianta cruciforme con un’abside particolare a “ferro di cavallo” e un tiburio ottagonale.

La facciata è semplice con un portale d’accesso essenziale e un campanile in mattoni cotti, forse aggiunto in un secondo momento.

The history of mankind has often followed the routes marked out by communication routes, in their heterogeneous conformation, ranging from simple paths to the imposing imperial roads of the Roman era.

This relationship is translated, for example in the place names, which retain the verbal trace.

This seems to be the case of Massama, the ancient Marsima, a place-name that, according to some scholars, derives from the location of the settlement along the ‘via maxima’, the road that in Roman times connected Tharros and Forum Traiani (today Fordongianus).

In Massama, we find the Oratorio delle Anime, a building of early medieval origin – as attested by the ancient dedication to San Nicola, bishop of Mira – with later interventions in the Romanesque period (the first half of the 13th century).

The church has a cruciform ground plan, but in the place of the eastern arm there is a large apse with a distinctive horseshoe shape.

An octagonal lantern is inserted at the intersection of the arms.

The bell tower is made of earthenware tiles in contrast to the rest of the church built of stone: this could be an indication that it was built at a later date.

The façade has a sloping profile, with a smooth face and no windows.

The essential entrance portal opens here.

A little above the portal, a row of ashlars marked by cavities created to accommodate the typical ceramic basins can be seen.

We thus bid farewell to the church of the Oratory of the Souls, trusting that our visit may have helped to alleviate their stay in Purgatory.

V. Angius, “Massama”, in G. Casalis, Dizionario geografico storico-statistico-commerciale degli Stati di S.M. il Re di Sardegna, X, Torino, G. Maspero, 1842, pp. 375-385;
R. Serra, “L’oratorio delle Anime a Massama (con rilievi del monumento curati da Augusto Garau)”, in Annali delle Facoltà di Lettere, Filosofia e Magistero dell’Università di Cagliari, XXXIV, 1971, pp. 33-55;
R. Coroneo, Architettura romanica dalla metà del Mille al primo ‘300, collana “Storia dell’arte in Sardegna”, Nuoro, Ilisso, 1993, sch. 103;
R. Coroneo, Chiese romaniche della Sardegna. Itinerari turistico-culturali, Cagliari, AV, 2005, p. 76.