Buggerru, Malfidano Mine

Mining plants occupy a large area near the sea. The Henry Gallery, which is part of the Malfidano mine, can be visited by appointment.
Buggerru is the most important example of a mining center that gradually grew until it achieved administrative autonomy from the municipality of Fluminimaggiore in 1960. The initial nucleus of the plants and the first residences near the sea were built in the second half of the nineteenth century to go up the valley and occupy the different levels of the gully created by river erosion in the hinterland.
The development of Buggerru, owned by the Société anonyme des mines de Malfidano, was such that it was already equipped with electricity in 1896, second only to Monteponi. Buggerru's fortune declined with the two world wars and was more generally affected by the international crisis of 1929.
Among the plants of the lead-zinc mine, used approximately between 1870 and 1977, the structures that are located in the wide opening to the sea stand out above all: here you can see the magnificent remains of the Lamarmora laveria, which never came into operation due to problems with maritime domain, and, on the opposite side, the Malfidano laveria with stone and wood structures and arched openings.
The port is dominated by the exit of the Henry Gallery, which crosses the Planu Sartu plateau and was once traveled by a steam train that carried the mineral extracted from the surrounding mineral crops to the laveries. Today, the visit allows you to cross the miners' workplace, looking out from time to time extraordinary landscapes that alternate between the sea and rocks with very suggestive cliffs.
The town of Buggerru winds along Via Malfidano, the main axis of the settlement, and is arranged along the limestone terraces that have recursively favored the system of terraced houses, some of which - the oldest - are still visible in the old part of the town with the characteristic external staircase. Even the new building continues to be arranged on different levels, although it often presents references to a questionable “Mediterranean architecture”.
Also in Buggerru, the church and the management house are the preeminent buildings: the first, consecrated in 1882, has a classical façade with a tympanum and Doric columns, completed in 1948 by a spectacular staircase. The direction is close to the sea, protected by an embankment with a ballast.
In front of the port, in a building destined since the end of the nineteenth century as a workshop and carpentry with lathes and milling machines in its original position, today the museum on the history of Buggerru and its territory is set up, with archaeological finds, fossils, minerals, tools, documents, papers. The mine shop and the old cinema have also been reconstructed, with authentic pieces. Right in the carpentry shop, in 1904, workers' protest broke out with a strike, which matured amid the difficult conditions of working in the mine and ended with the death of three miners killed by law enforcement.
The mine is part of the Geominerary, Historical and Environmental Park of Sardinia, recognized by UNESCO.

History of studies
Buggerru's mining plants are mentioned in several works on industrial archeology in Sardinia.

Bibliography
S. Mezzolani-A. Simoncini, Sardinia to save. Landscapes and architecture of the mines, Nuoro, Sardo Photographic Archive, 1993, pp. 194-212;
F. Masala, “Mining settlements. Forms, Architectures, Problems”, in Founding Cities in Sardinia, edited by A. Lino, Cagliari, Cuec, 1998, pp. 36-50.

How to get there
Leaving Iglesias from Via Cattaneo, the Malfidano mine can be reached from the detour of the SS 126 towards Funtanamare, which after having touched Montecani and Acquaresi, reaches Buggerru.

Tag

Structure category: industrial archeology

Content type: Mine

Usability: Open

Province: Sud Sardegna

Common: Buggerru

Macro Territorial Area: South Sardinia

POSTAL CODE: 09010

Address: via Pranu Sartu, s.n.c.

Telephone: +39 3341142910

E-mail: galleriahenry@comunebuggerru.it

Website: www.visitbuggerru.it/galleria-henry www.comunebuggerru.it/it/argomenti/argomento/Cultura

Facebook: it-it.facebook.com/people/Galleria-Henry/100063161533657

Information on tickets and access: Visits to the Henry Gallery of the Malfidano mine can only be made by reservation, by contacting the facility in advance or by booking from the mine's website, where the updated price list is also available.

Access mode: For a fee

Update

13/11/2023 - 12:55

Services

Guided tours