Sardinia is the second largest island in the Mediterranean after Sicily, with a surface area of 23,833 km2 inland, a total of 24,089 km2 including the minor islands. Its landscape mosaic confirms a position of transition between Africa and Europe, as Sardinia is almost the same distance from the coast of both continents, and is separated from Corsica by c.10 km of sea. The island is mainly mountainous with several isolated groups of mountains such as Limbara, Sette Fratelli and Gennargentu, the highest of all at 1,834 m, but also with hilly lands, plateaus and a few plains
The long presence of humans on the island has been of vital importance in shaping the landscape. The most ancient human remains are traced back to the Lower Palaeolithic and have been found in the North, namely in Perfugas. However, the most imposing prehistoric native culture has been the Nuragic, the remains of which are still visible today everywhere on the island, and in particularly in areas with high settlement concentration such as Campeda and Planargia. Yet, culturally and politically Sardinia has been often influenced by its neighbours. In historic times Phoenicians, Carthaginians and Romans succeeded one another as the island’s ‘masters’. Following the eclipse of the Roman Empire, Vandals and Byzantines held the island before it became a protectorate of Pisa, Genoa and then Spain. Finally, after a period as independent kingdom (1718–1861), Sardinia joined the unified Italy in 1861.
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Pungetti, G., Marini, A., Vogiatzakis, I. (2008). Sardinia. In: Vogiatzakis, I., Pungetti, G., Mannion, A.M. (eds) Mediterranean Island Landscapes. Landscape Series, vol 9. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-5064-0_8
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