Villacidro holds the secrets of the ancient Sardinian art of jewellery making and is proud of its great handcrafting tradition of the creation of jewels. Skilful craftsmen and women manufacture these pieces of jewellery according to traditional techniques that recall ancient ornaments for their shapes and fashions as well as for the technique used to make them.

The jewellery making tradition has very ancient origins and uses various materials (gold, silver, coral and semi-precious stones) and handcraft techniques such as filigree, particularly sought-after and refined with which some of the most significant of all Sardinian jewels are created: the “fede sarda” (Sardinian wedding band) in its many variations, su lasu, a butterfly-shaped pendant that is attached to velvet ribbon and worn around the neck, and the breast-shaped “bottone sardo” (Sardinian button), once a very precious ornament of the women’s costume.

Traditional gems are filled with symbols and references. Many of these crafted jewels are religious in theme such as the: patens, medals, hearts, monstrances, crucifixes or rosaries; others are used as good luck charms: sa begia, su corru, s’oju de Santa Lughia, s’ispuligadente.

Other pieces of jewellery that are frequently made include: rings, pins, pendants, necklaces, earrings, perfume holders, clothing fasteners and the typical buttonera, a series of filigree buttons sewn along the sleeves a women’s jackets. The most representative category is that of amulets and talismans handed down from generation to generation that hold great significance in the everyday lives of the people with their symbolic meaning and power to ward off the evil eye.