Building work on houses in Tharros was complex and articulate. They are difficult to interpret as it was an entire city, excavated decades ago, when the data found was not recorded. The houses were mainly in the western part of the central quarter (fig. 1) and on the eastern slope of the San Giovanni hill (fig. 2).

Fig. 1 - blocks of houses in the central quarter. The black line separates the public area where places of worship were located (photo by Unicity S.p.A.) Review C. Tronchetti)

Fig. 2 - The housing quarter on the slopes of San Giovanni hill (photo by Unicity S.p.A.

The special geomorphological shape of the area, with steep slopes (figs. 3-4) affected the layout of the houses built on terraces in the ground, forcing them to use compulsory solutions.

Fig. 3 - Houses on the slope of San Giovanni hill (photo by Unicity S.p.A.)

Fig. 4 - Houses in the central area (photo by Unicity S.p.A.)

Four main types (figs. 5-7) have been identified from the analysis of the housing maps, where it is possible to carry it out, considering the long matters of life, changes and renovations.

Fig. 5 - Type of Roman houses in Tharros (from MARANO 2013)

Fig. 6 - House belonging to type 2 of fig. 5 (photo by Unicity S.p.A.)

Fig. 7 - House probably belonging to type 4 of fig. 5 (photo by Unicity S.p.A.)

Like most dwellings in Roman cities, the houses had a second floor or a gallery paved in wood; in some cases, existence is proven by the cavity in the walls, that held the beams supporting the floors (fig. 8).

Fig. 8 - Roman house; the cavities for the beams supporting the gallery floor can be seen on the back wall (photo by Unicity S.p.A.)