City/Town:Terra Mala

Name of the place:Quartu S.Elena

Country:Italy

Province/Département:Cagliari

Region:Sardinia

Location:https://www.expedia.it/Terra-Mala.dx6345624#

Reasons for its inclusion:In Sardinia legends have always played a fundamental role, still remaining a very important part of popular culture. Born to tell, but also to explain events surrounded by mystery or become social bogeymen, legends are always linked to historical fac

Presence in films, literary works, art, etc.:The legend also inspired the beautiful thriller by Rossana Copez and Giovanni Follesa which, in fact, bears the title of "Terra Mala". Another writer, Giovanni Panunzio, has collected some of the legends related to the bay of Capitana in hi

Related stories or tales:It is said that, in the years of the Battle of Lepanto, there existed on these coasts a small village of shepherds and fishermen, devoted to a beautiful and powerful woman, whom everyone called the Capitana. Although she was respected and feared by all for her role, her affable character and beauty made her look like a queen. And in fact, in her own way, she was. Kidnapped by a pirate not long before, she no longer became his slave, but his wife, a companion of life and adventures. Between the two there was a strong love, capable of overcoming time and the distances that often forced them to say goodbye. Convinced that raids by sea could long prove dangerous for a girl, the pirate often left her in the custody of the village, aware that everyone would love and respect her. In the village, moreover, the pirate had hidden a treasure, the result of the continuous raids carried out over the years. Precious stones, gold coins, sacred objects and jewels filled a heavy chest, hidden somewhere in the bowels of the earth. In the village everyone knew about the treasure, but no one dared to ask or search, aware that in custody of the chest there was a monstrous creature, "sa musca macedda", a large fly with the size of an ox that, with its large sharp paws, would have torn to pieces anyone who found himself in front of the booty.In the absence of her beloved, the maiden commanded the village, carrying on agricultural activities and collecting the taxes of its inhabitants. When evening came, he sat on a rock and turned his gaze towards the sea, scrutinizing the horizon waiting to see the silhouette of the ship appear on the horizon; and every time it happened, his heart exploded with joy. One morning, at dawn, her beloved greeted her once again, suddenly recalled by a rescue mission to an allied ship, hunted by the Spanish fleets. With his heart swollen with sadness, the pirate sailed, looking at her until the moment when he no longer saw the coast on the horizon. And the Captain on the other side did the same. But this time fate was mocking and cruel: the ship was seized by a storm that lasted incessantly throughout the night, swallowing it in the depths of the abyss. Before dying, the pirate once again thought of her, his queen, whom he would never hold in his arms again. It is said that the Captain has never lost hope of seeing her distant love again, continuing to turn her gaze to the horizon, waiting for a signal. Even today he waits in silence for his pirate, with his hair in the wind and the melancholy of those who wait for the return of a lost love. On summer evenings, when the wind blows and the waves crash on the cliff, anyone walking in the bay can hear the cry of the Captain who blends into the sound of the stormy sea, evoking bitterness for something that, perhaps, will never return.

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