The proto-historic site of Brunku S’Omu is situated in the territory of Villa Verde (OR), in central-southern Sardinia, on the eastern slope of Monte Arci, one of the most important obsidian mining centres in the Mediterranean.

It may be suggested that the presence of this material, widely used in the Neolithic and Eneolithic periods on the island, favoured occupation in the area which continued into the historical period.

The nuragic complex, which includes the remains of a nuraghe and a vast hut village, was excavated between 1982 and 2004 by Dr. Emerenziana Usai of the Archaeological Superintendency for Cagliari and Oristano. The excavations uncovered a large part of the village, identifying at least seventeen circular or sub-oval huts, most of which were excavated.

In 2013, the University of Cagliari reopened the excavations, mainly concentrating on digging hut 16 situated in the north-eastern part of the village.

A circular structure was uncovered standing to a maximum height of 3.12 m (section of the north wall) with an internal diameter at the base of 5.00/5.15 m. The walls were an average of 1.70 m wide. Unfortunately, the structures were not well-preserved due to the collapse of the summit and localised sagging caused by tree roots.

The walls were built in more or less regular horizontal rows of rough-hewn basalt blocks. They presented a curve, in particular the better-preserved northern segment, that inclined noticeably into the room, suggesting the original roof to have been a false vault of stone slabs.

A basalt paving of large slabs was identified in the southern part of the room. The top of one slab presented a basin with a carefully sculpted rim. The paving did not seem to be present in the northern part of the structure, but the excavation remains to be completed here.

The excavation inside the hut revealed an interesting stratigraphy. The preliminary results show that the hut was used both for the preparation of food and probably for metal working activities.
The finds, including necked vases with ‘reverse elbow’ handles and cooking cups, date the period of the hut’s use to the Final Bronze Age (1150-850 B.C.), which is coherent with the rest of the village.