04 - Villa Tanit-Astarte

Located at the tip of Capo di Pula lie the remains of the ancient city of Nora, one of the earliest points of contact between Punic traders and the ancient Sardinians. Among the ruins of Nora, atop a small hill, visitors can admire the remains of the Temple of Tanit, the Goddess of life, worshipped by the Phoenicians under the name Astarte. According to legend, invoking her ensured well-being, harmony, fertility, and abundance. Tanit is symbolized by a triangle combined with a disk—an image believed to represent the birth of the sun, the endless cycle of day and night, and the eternity tied to the celestial nature of the star.

In Phoenician and Punic symbolism, the triangle is more than a mere geometric shape—it becomes a mystical symbol, rich with multiple meanings and layered mysteries, forever intertwined with the history of this corner of the Mediterranean.

It is at the urban scale that the triangle reappears and takes on form. The triangular configuration of the plot itself shapes and molds a design made of angles and edges, resulting in a balance between welcoming and defensive spaces. The outcome is an introverted architecture that closes itself off from the street with a solid frontage that acts as a protective barrier from the outside world, while opening inward toward the courtyard—reinforcing the private, intimate sphere of its inhabitants. This ‘privatization’ embodies the concept of interiority as the very essence of private life.

The villa unfolds across three levels: one underground and two above ground, connected by a staircase—the building’s "prow"—which winds along the angular dynamism that characterizes the entire project. The layout of the rooms and the rhythm of the openings further emphasize the contrast between introversion and extroversion: technical rooms and corridors are placed along the northern wall facing the street, while the living spaces face south and open onto the internal courtyard. The north façade features horizontal light slits that minimize external interaction while still providing natural light to the spaces they serve. In stark contrast, the south façade is composed of wide window openings that not only let in light but also ensure both visual and physical continuity between the interior living spaces and the courtyard with its surrounding garden, allowing for a high degree of permeability between indoors and outdoors.

This project goes beyond thoughtful spatial planning and environmental integration; it also seeks new architectural, technological, and construction solutions that are still rare within Sardinia’s building landscape.

The outcome of this research is a building constructed with X-LAM panels—a natural material like wood, which remains rare in Sardinian residential construction and is still in a pioneering and experimental phase. This project is well-suited to the challenge and opens the doors of the island to innovation and sustainable architecture.