Giardini Pubblici (Public Gardens of Cagliari), Cagliari

The city park Giardini Pubblici is a peaceful and relaxing place with beautiful gardens and sculptures dating back to the 19th century. It's perfect for a walk or stop to take a break, as there are plenty of benches to sit down on and enjoy the sights and sounds of Cagliari. The park is also great for children, the elderly and any age group, as there are plenty of areas for them to explore.

The public gardens of Cagliari are an urban park in the Sardinian capital located on the border between the La Vega district and the Castello district, the oldest in the city. They stand on an area that the Municipality of Cagliari purchased in 1840, and were built under the reign of the Savoy. Just under 2 hectares in size, they house the building of the Municipal Art Gallery of Cagliari, which was once a powder magazine of the Cagliari arsenal, and until 2005 there were two enormous cannons dating back to the war period, right at the interior of the park. There are around sixty plants, all centenary, exotic plants, palms, and two magnoloid ficuses over 125 years old. The works in 2005, which cost around one million euros, made it possible to make various improvements to the gardens, such as the two water basins with fountains, the renovation of the ancient 300 meter long central promenade which had been destroyed in various parts and the Completely new water system. Already at the beginning of the 19th century the need was felt to create a green lung in Cagliari, which was poor, and in 1816 the viceroy Giacomo Pes of Villamarina chose the uncultivated area in front of the Regia Polveriera as suitable. In 1822 the Regia Polveriera exploded and was rebuilt along neoclassical lines based on a design by Carlo Boyl of Putifigari. In 1840 the garden became property of the municipality, and many works were undertaken: the area, previously full of protruding rocks, was leveled and the municipal agronomist Piccaluga inserted new floral essences. After a new explosion of the powder magazine, a new renovation of the complex begins, with the reconstruction of the powder magazine building and the planting of new trees, such as ficus magnolias and junipers. In 1933, the interesting entrance on viale Regina Elena was created, designed by Ubaldo Badas.

The Public Gardens constitute an important green lung of the city, the entrance to which is located in Largo Dessì. With almost two hectares of extension, the Public Gardens constitute an important green lung of the city, with over a hundred years of history behind it, and within them they house the cultural center of the Municipal Art Gallery, previously Regia Polveriera, housed on the opposite side of the 'main entrance. The main entrance of the Public Gardens of Cagliari overlooks Largo Dessì and Via Badas (at the end of Viale Regina Elena), located between the historic Castello district and the La Vega district, to which two secondary entrances are added: the first on Viale San Vincenzo and the second at the base of a staircase which, from Via Giardini Pubblici climbs up to Colle Buoncammino and, crossing a canyon a few meters high dug into the sandstone, leads to Viale Buoncammino, next to the former city prison. The gardens were created in the 19th century, redeveloping an abandoned and uncultivated area in front of the then Royal Polveriera: the military building exploded in 1822 and was rebuilt in 1828 based on a project by the architect Carlo Boyl of Putifigari, in neo-classical style, while the green area follows the typical canons of nineteenth-century gardens. In 1840 the area was purchased by the Municipality of Cagliari and since then numerous interventions have taken place. From 1928 to 1933, based on a project entrusted to Ubaldo Badas, there was the renovation of the internal spaces of the Regia Polveriera and their new use as a Municipal Art Gallery, as well as the opening of the main entrance on Viale Regina Elena (today preceded by Largo Dessì and Via Badas). In 2005, the last important works that designed the Public Gardens as visible today were completed: the paving of the main avenue, the dirt paths and the side avenue were completed; accesses to the lawns were opened for the public; the fountain that interrupted the main avenue was eliminated and two were built from scratch in front of the Municipal Art Gallery; two cannons were removed and placed in front of the Lazzaretto of Sant'Elia. The green arrangement present is rich and valuable, which develops on the sides of the long avenue that divides the gardens longitudinally, in which the presence of a monumental magnolioid ficus that is over a hundred years old stands out, as well as numerous adult specimens of jacaranda, palm, holm oak and ficus. There is also a sports area: just after the main entrance, on the limestone wall on the left, an area dedicated to sports climbing has been created. Finally, in 2020, wooden homes were installed for the large feline colony present. ***PH***