The Basilica di San Gavino stands on the Monte Agellu in the centre of Porto Torres, on what was originally a Roman and paleo-Christian necropolis, and later the site of two churches (5th-7th century), the remains of which were incorporated into the crypt. A gallery was dug to hold, in artistic tombs, the relics of the martyrs Gavino, Proto and Gianuario persecuted by the emperor Diocletian, discovered in 1614 and now objects of pilgrimage for thousands of pilgrims.
Excavation uncovered several archaeological finds kept in the Antiquiarium Turritano, including tombs decorated with mosaics and frescoes, statues and a Byzantine cistern. San Gavino acted as cathedral for a thousand years (484-1441) as the bishop's seat, and is set between two courtyards known as Atrio Comita and Atrio Metropoli. The basilica has some unique features such as its unusual longitudinal layout (58m in length, three times its width), the anomaly of the two opposing apses and the absence of a facade.
The outside is divided by pilasters and sloping arches, and has entrances on the two long sides: to the north, a Roman door illustrated with Adam and Eve, and to the south a Gothic-Catalan door. The inside, has single windows lighting three naves, divided by arcades supported by 22 columns in pink granite and grey marble, taken from Roman and Byzantine buildings. The longitudinal structure is closed on both shorter sides by an apse.
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