It was the spiritual centre of a small village and then the main abbey of the Vallombrosian Order in Sardinia. Later on, it was abandoned and forgotten and was even turned into a warehouse and a stable, before being rediscovered and returned to its religious function. The church of San Michele di Plaiano is located about ten kilometres from Sassari, along the road that leads to the Platamona coast. This is where the ancient village of Plaiano was located in the period of the Judicates.

The church has its historical roots in 1082, when the judge of Torres, Mariano I, granted the lands and the title deeds to the Opera di Santa Maria di Pisa. A few decades later, the church passed to the Camaldolese monks of San Zeno, who elevated it to an abbey. It was while the Vallombrosians possessed it that San Michele di Plaiano reached the height of its wealth and power: the property included lands, vineyards, servants and four other churches under its direct control.

The decline began when the Order suddenly abandoned the abbey during the 15th century, perhaps due to wars, famines and the progressive depopulation of the village. The church passed into the hands of the diocese of Ampurias, then to the Spanish Inquisition, to the hospital of Sassari and lastly to private individuals and to the bank of Credito Fondiario Sardo. During this period, it was in very poor condition and was used as a tool shed and an animal shelter. The projects to renovate the building began around the mid-20th century, after which it went back to being a place of worship and, in recent years, has once again become the church of reference for the area.

The building was constructed with limestone blocks, with a longitudinal layout and a wooden roof. The church hall has a single nave and the apse was demolished – probably during the period of private ownership – to make room for a structure attached to the back. Also on the south side, where the convent’s rooms must have been located in ancient times, more recent constructions are found today. The north side and the façade retain Romanesque features, but date back to different building phases. The stepped single-lancet windows, the pilasters and the small arches of the wall are the building’s oldest elements, while the remaining part dates back to the Camaldolese phase. Particularly the façade was rebuilt after 1115: it is structured in a single order with a tympanum separated by a ledge, in which there is a false loggia and a mullioned window. You will notice three blind arches, with the architraved door that opens in the centre of the middle one. The decoration is completed by tiles containing geometric motifs, originally inlaid.