Itinerary edited by the UNIVERSITY OF CAGLIARI 
In the early 1950s, our understanding of the cultural development of prehistoric Sardinia started to take shape, especially as far as the Neolithic period (6th-4th century B.C. E.) was concerned. Extensive archaeological fieldwork was carried out on the plain of Campidano between Cagliari and Oristano. This resulted in a large number of findings of lithic artifacts that were moved to the University of Cagliari. Professor Enrico Atzeni, a palaeontologist and Director of the Department of Archaeological Studies and History of Arts, worked tirelessly in the field in collaboration with the Archaeological Superintendency of Cagliari and Oristano. Thanks to these efforts, the University was able to assemble a large collection of hand-made tools used in everyday life, along with symbolic objects. The University soon found itself with superb collections of enormous scientific value. They would help scholars to trace the evolution of prehistoric material in Sardinia and became an essential part of the academic programmes offered by the university in this field. The Prehistoric and Lithic collections are part of the Interdepartmental Centre for the University Museums and Historical Archives (CIMCAS) and are made available for the broadest scientific dissemination of our knowledge of prehistoric Sardinia.
The exhibition of the Prehistoric and Lithic Collections organized by the Interdepartmental Centre for the University Museums and Historical Archives (CIMCAS), is arranged in chronological order and comprises over four hundred pieces. The exhibition shows the evolution of lithic artifacts and the technical procedures and methods used by the communities that settled in villages on the plain of Campidano as well as natural caves in the Sulcis-Iglesiente area in Sardinia. The production of these items dates back to Neolithic, approximately 7,500 years ago, and extends up until the late Nuragic period, during the Iron Age (1st Millennium B.C.E.). The first rudimental weapons and tools of sharp-edged stone (fig. 1) reflected different degrees of craftsmanship and were used to work with vegetal and animal materials. They were subsequently replaced by hard volcanic and metamorphic rocks that were chipped and polished.
Axes and hatchets (fig. 2 and 3), grinders (fig. 4), mills and several types of strikers (fig. 5) were used for agricultural activities, food preparation and the extraction and transformation of minerals. The exhibition also includes other handcrafted symbolic objects that were more likely used to display rank and social status (fig. 6).
A series of local double-face items round out the collection. They date back to the Lower Palaeolithic period (over 500,000 years ago) and come from North Africa. They can help us understand better the earliest stages of man’s dealings with the stones around them. This can be seen as the first step towards today’s highly technological age.
