The pre-Nuragic civilisations and the Nuragic peoples left no written records, but Sardinia has inherited a multitude of monuments: thousands of Domus de Janas, menhirs and dolmens, over seven thousand nuraghi, hundreds of Giants’ Tombs and sacred wells, which characterise and dominate the Island's inland landscapes. The link between the rural context and the archaeological area is one of the most fascinating aspects of the Tanca Manna, unusually built in a prominent position with respect to the present-day town of Nuoro.

This is a single-tower nuraghe, with a chamber covered by a tholos (false dome) roof and has two opposing niches, one of which is carved into the bank of rock: it is a common type among the over twenty nuraghi in the Nuoro area. The building was constructed on the spur of a rocky outcrop that forms its base and part of the walls. The walls are made from rough-hewn granite blocks.

Now incorporated into the town, the Nuragic park of Tanca Manna dominates the promontory of the hill of the same name: from up there, you can enjoy a beautiful view of the other urbanised hills of the city - once inhabited by communities of shepherds - that extends as far as Ortobene, symbolic mountain of the capital city of Barbagia. To reach the park, you need to take Via Martiri della Libertà, in the southern part of the city. Even in the Nuragic age, Tanca Manna was inhabited by people devoted to breeding and processing of the derivative products.

The village around the tower was extensive, with over 150 huts that reached the steep slopes of the hill towards the town centre: the rectangular housing structures represent a residential model dating back to the first Nuragic phase, which differs from the circular hut typical in more recent times. In fact, the Nuragic tower dates back to the Middle Bronze Age, while the finds unearthed in the various excavation campaigns (still ongoing) inside the village - a pintadera, decorated jugs and fusaroles are the most recently found and exhibited - bear witness to human presence from the Final Bronze Age to the beginning of the Iron Age.

As well as guided tours inside the Tanca Manna park, there are also experimental archaeology workshops (also for schools) held by archaeologists, musical events and readings.

The territory of Nuoro is dotted with megalithic monuments, from the Domus de Janas to the Nuragic towers, passing through the Giants’ Tombs: they are witnesses of a strong presence of the Nuragic civilisation in Barbagia.