They call San Sperate the town of peaches, and the town of murals, but all over the world, it is known as the town of Pinuccio Sciola, the sculptor who gave stones a voice.
A legacy of stone and sound
Not far from the Sardinian capital Cagliari, in the little town of San Sperate, the Park of the Sound Stones resonates with music, art, and nature, and is a sensory haven that fuses sound and stone. It is the creation of the visionary artist Pinuccio Sciola, a sculptor whose work transcends traditional boundaries and speaks directly to the soul, and who was born in 1942 in San Sperate, where he left his legacy for all to admire. 
Pinuccio Sciola’s Sound Stones Park
An integral part of Sardinia’s soul
Sciola, who died in 2018, dedicated his life to transforming cold, inert rock into living, breathing instruments, an art deeply rooted in the Sardinian landscape, culture, and history, drawing inspiration from the island’s ancient Nuragic civilization, where megalithic stones were revered as sacred objects. Sciola’s stones are made from the same materials that man has used on the second-largest island in the Mediterranean for centuries, limestone, basalt and granite, durable and rich in texture and colours and that for centuries were used to built the “muri a secco” walls that crisscross Sardinia. His sculptures are also reminiscent of the nuraghe, Sardinia’s prehistoric stone towers that dot the island and speak of a civilization that thrived thousands of years ago.
There are over 700 stones in the park
The artist believed that stone is not lifeless but rather a repository of history, energy, and music, and his life was spent unlocking its voice through his carvings. Sciola’s method involved precise, geometric incisions into the surface of the stone which, when stroked, emit a variety of melodic tones—deep, resonant hums, or soft, ethereal harmonics—resembling the vibrations of nature. Walking among the sound stones - there are more than 700 in the park - feels like stepping into an ancient yet futuristic soundscape, where every tone evokes the primal music of the earth. Each piece is carved with grooves that interact with human touch or the movement of air, transforming the stone into a resonant body. Some stones are monumental, towering like ancient monoliths, while others are smaller and more intimate, inviting closer exploration in this open-air museum which is also an active cultural center. Whether you’re a music lover, an art enthusiast, or just a curious traveler, this is a unique opportunity to delve into Sardinia’s cultural and natural heritage, and into Pinuccio Sciola’s world which invites us to listen more closely to the world around us. For information: https://www.psmuseum.it
