AGGIUS

Aggius was the epicentre of banditry in Gallura for about three centuries. According to legend, at the time of the most horrific feuds, the devil looked down from the mountain dominating the town and produced a dull, echoing noise banging on the unstable granitic rock called ‘lu tamburu’ (‘drum’), thus terrorising Aggius’ inhabitants while shouting: ‘Aggjiu meu, Aggjiu meu, candu sarà la dì chi ti z’aggjiu a pultà in buléu’ (‘Aggius of mine, when will the time come for me to take you away in a whirl?’). A cross placed on the mountain – now called ‘Mount Cruzitta’ for this reason – restored peace in the town. The Museum of Banditry aims at fostering positive values to encourage a mindset that promotes legality and public morality at every level. It is no coincidence that the museum is located in the old Magistrate’s Court, in the most ancient area of the town. The exhibition is divided into four rooms that display interesting documentation and artefacts worth seeing. One of the displays is dedicated to Sebastiano Tansu, a bandit from Aggius known as ‘Il muto di Gallura’ (‘The mute man of Gallura’) who also inspired the namesake novel.