It was once an episcopal see, symbolized by the former cathedral, and today it is the village of Boes and Merdules, wooden monstrous-looking masks, protagonists of one of the Island's most famous carnivals. The village of Ottana was originally pastoral and, at the end of the 20th century, it became a site for the petrochemical and textile industries. Today, it is mainly dedicated to agricultural activities, artisan agri-foods and wood. It has two thousand 300 inhabitants and stands near the hills of Barbagia di Ollolai, on a large plain in the valley of the Tirso river, that forms lake Omodeo a little further south. Ottana has deeply-rooted traditions that have resisted over time, among which Su Carrasegare. The masks of Ottana retrace the archaic agricultural and pastoral rituals.