Pray for a cloudless morn so a lucky 40 can see the Spring Equinox

The spring equinox at Mnajdra Temples takes place this year on 20 and 21 March and Heritage Malta is once again giving guided tours and early-bird rights of access to a lucky 40 people only, so as ‘to enhance the visitor experience’. May be, just may be this year, I’ll manage to get out of bed (at around 04.45) to get there in time – I am a bare 10 minutes’ drive away. If you want to go, book quickly (see below) so you won’t miss the magic unfold as of the first shafts of the summer season’s sunrise enter the temple’s inner sanctum.

If you’re at all into prehistory, mysticism or ancient cults or just fancy a more unearthly start to your day on that weekend, then it’s worth the effort. We’re giving you a couple of weeks’ notice, but expect tickets to be snapped up quickly.

A bit of background from the experts
The unique setting of the Mnajdra Temples at Qrendi, overlooking the coast, gives them a special charm not to be found in any other of the large-scale megalithic buildings of the Maltese Islands, many of which lie in more urban areas or inland.

Sunrise on the first day of each season underlines the relationship between the temples and celestial bodies. Although it is not known for certain whether these orientations were intentional, they are so systematic that this is very probable. In prehistoric agricultural societies, observation of the motion of the stars, the moon and sun could have been related to the changing seasons and times of planting and harvesting crops.

On these Equinox days, the first rays of the sun light up the edge of a megalith found to the right of the central doorway connecting the first pair of chamber to the inner chamber of the Lower Mnajdra Temple.

Event Tickets & Further Info
Tickets are €15 for the general public and €10 for Heritage Malta and ICOM members and are strictly on a first-come-first-served basis. You can buy tickets from any Heritage Malta site or museum as well as the Heritage Malta head office, Old University Buildings, Merchants Street, Valletta. Tel: +356 22954000. On the mornings, participants meet point at 05.30 next to the Ħagar Qim main entrance.

For further information, see also the Heritage Malta website.

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Mnajdra's winter solstice; the same as it's always been, tented temples or not

I’ve been meaning to make it to the summer solstice at Mnajdra Temples for the past two years. But, I just can’t manage to get out of bed (at around 04.30) to get there in time – and I am a bare 10 minutes’ drive away. I am just too comatose in the summer heat. So, perhaps I’ll fare better at seeing the first shafts of winter’s sunrise hit the temple’s inner sanctum. But, it’s pretty nippy in the air over night now and my duvet, not will power, might win.

If you’re at all into prehistory, mysticism or ancient cults or just fancy a more unusual start to your Christmas week – well armed with a flask of hot coffee – then do try to make Heritage Malta’s guided tours of Mnajdra, Sunday 20th and Monday 21st December, meeting at Hagar Qim temple at 06.15.

But, you’ll have to be quick, which is why we’re giving you a week’s notice; only 40 people will be allowed access to the event on each of the days, in order to ‘enhance the visitor experience’.

A bit of background from the experts
The unique setting of the Mnajdra Temples at Qrendi, overlooking the coast, gives them a special charm not to be found in any other of the large-scale megalithic buildings of the Maltese Islands, many of which lie in more urban areas or inland.

Sunrise on the first day of each season underlines the relationship between the temples and celestial bodies. Although it is not known for certain whether these orientations were intentional, they are so systematic that this is very probable. In prehistoric agricultural societies, observation of the motion of the stars, the moon and sun could have been related to the changing seasons and times of planting and harvesting crops.

On these days, the first rays of the sun light up the edge of a megalith found to the right of the central doorway connecting the first pair of chamber to the inner chamber of the Lower Mnajdra Temple.

Event Tickets & Further Info
Tickets are €15 for the general public and €10 for Heritage Malta members and are strictly on a first-come-first-served basis. You can buy tickets from any Heritage Malta site as well as the Heritage Malta head office, Old University Buildings, Merchants Street, Valletta. Tel: +356 22 954 000. On the mornings, participants meet at Hagar Qim Temple at 6.15 hrs.

For further information, see the Heritage Malta website.

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What a work of art is woman. c.5000 years old and still beautiful.

Mention prehistoric man in Malta, and the stereotype image evoked by the many caveman representations brings to mind a picture a loin-cloth clad, bungling figure who huddles around a fire indulging in primitive behaviour.  A picture implying a society which had no time for the finer things in life and which was solely directed at facing the challenges of mere subsistence.

The reality seems to have been far from this.  Maltese prehistoric society spanned over five millennia and has left behind a rich diversity of remains ranging from temples and tools to pottery and statues.  All this implies the existence of a sophisticated society which differs from ours solely in terms of the level of technology rather than in anything else.

Of the many different finds made by archaeologists excavating Maltese prehistoric temples, hypogea and other sites, some of the most remarkable are the ones representing the human form.  The figures range in scale from the giant Tarxien statue which was originally three metres high to ones which are a mere few centimetres in size.  They can be standing, seating or lying and are either carved from limestone or bones or modelled out of clay.

When discussing the human form in Maltese prehistoric archaeology one is faced with yet another stereotype: the derogatory Fat Lady stereotype.  Whereas the accepted notion at present indicates that most statues are of a sexually ambiguous nature, rather than merely female, there are statues whose gender can be clearly distinguished.

Hundreds of these statues and statuettes have been unearthed from the prehistoric sites over the past two hundred years and one shudders to think about the countless others that have been looted over the centuries, when the authorities used to grant license to speculators to hunt for treasure in prehistoric sites. Other finds may still be lying there in unexplored sites which still await proper scientific excavation.

The National Museum of Archaeology in Valletta displays a good cross section of prehistoric human representations in its ground floor prehistoric exhibit.  The statues are beautifully arranged and described.

In spite of the glory associated with the more famous of the prehistoric statues, foremost among which are the Sleeping Lady from the Hal Saflieni Hypogeum and the so-called Venus of Malta found at Hagar Qim, my favourite statuette is the one in the photo above.

The statue is very definitely female and is fashioned out of clay. It is tiny, spanning ten centimetres at best. Although incomplete, and bearing the ravages of time (being circa five thousand years old), it shows a seated female figure.  Its legs are tucked to the right and one of her arms rests on her knee, although broken off below the elbow.

The posture is so alluringly feminine, the craftsmanship superb. Simplistically made from a roll of clay, the statue features all the humanity possible from a representation of its size and scale.  It is so revealing and yet so demure.  It oozes sexuality in an artistic and tasteful way.  And it is at least five thousand years old!  In my opinion it is the sexiest prehistoric representation ever found in Malta.

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It’s a source of national pride that Malta has had three properties inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage list since 1980. Here’s some thoughts on why they are must-sees for anyone visiting Malta, even for a short stay:

Valletta
Valletta, straddling a steep peninsula separating two harbours – famed Grand Harbour, and Marsamxett – is perhaps Europe’s very first, purpose-built city and a true example of early town planning at its best. It owes its origins to Grand Master Jean de La Valette, who planned it immediately following the defeat of the Saracens at the Great Siege of Malta in 1565. The new city, with its impressive and impenetrable defences was not to see real action until World War II though as the Saracen threat waned following the siege.

Taking over from Malta’s medieval capital Mdina, Valletta was to become one of the most modern cities of its day. The city was to see an influx of cash as a grateful Papacy and indulgent European nobles lavished it with riches enabling Valletta to house magnificent architecture and art works.

The capital today is still one of the most concentrated historic areas in the world. Constrained by the water and fortifications surrounding it, Valletta has not experienced urban sprawl – it had a suburb, Floriana, planned in the days of the Knights – and is therefore a gem of a city to explore. It is also easy to see on foot (though steep streets can take their toll in the heat!).

It’s impossible to list all the sites in Valletta and most visitors realise after one visit that they need to go back again. See our list of Valletta must-sees but don’t forget to make time for just strolling back streets and discovering old shop fronts, fountains, small churches, and hidden-away cafes.

Valletta is planned on a grid system, so places are easy to locate. For a taste of Valletta’s precipitous streets, walk St Ursula’s Street (Grand harbour side), which, while becoming somewhat ‘in’ for trendy young property buyers, has changed little for centuries. Another steep street (on the Marsamsett side) is Old Bakery Street from which you can glimpse the tip of the peninsula and the open sea.

For panoramas, go to both Upper and Lower Barakka Gardens; the former to view the grandeur of the harbour and across to the older ‘Three Cities’, and the latter to see out to sea. For a real treat, be there when the cruise liners leave port early evening (often Wednesdays at around 7pm, it seems).

But whatever you do, see Valletta’s most remarkable and impressive sight, St John’s Co-Cathedral. Plain and unassuming from the exterior, it is a magnificent baroque masterpiece inside with its ornate carved stone walls, a frescoed ceiling and an inlaid marble floor that’s the resting place and roll call of the leading Knights of St John. Extravagent tombs of Grand Masters adorn the side walkways. The cathedral has another claim to fame as it houses Caravaggio’s largest canvas, the ‘Beheading of St John the Baptist’ which was commissioned by the knights.

Of course, plans are also in place for Valletta’s next phase of metamorphosis: City Gate.

Megalithic Temples

Malta’s megalithic temples are bunched together as a single World Heritage Site. It is often quoted that the temples are believed to to be the oldest free-standing, stones in the world arranged by man. Certainly they predate Britain’s Stonehenge and are around 1,000 years older than the Great Pyramid of Giza. But there is some technical and archaeological debate as to whether they were free-standing as they may have been banked by earth and roofed. Though, as with most theories on Malta’s prehistory, much is speculation and up for grabs.

What is incredible is that neolithic man, seemingly isolated on tiny Malta and with limited resources, embarked on several thousand years of ‘temple building’ in worship of some deity or cult. And that man on neighbouring Sicily, with whom these early Malta dwellers had contact, did not follow suit and build similar structures. Malta’s temples were built roughly from the 5th to the 2nd millennium BC (approx Neolithic to Early Bronze).

There are seven main megalithic temples on the islands of Malta and Gozo. The ones visitors tend to go to are of course the most intact and impressive – Hagar Qim and Mnjadra which are evocatively located on the south-western coastline, and Tarxien temples in the town of the same name to the south of the Malta. The aptly-named Ggantija on the island of Gozo is renowned for its gigantic Bronze Age structure. The Ta’Hagrat and Skorba are important too as they show the evolution of the temple-building expertise as it was passed down the millennia.

Earlier this year, both Hagar Qim and Mnajdra were tented over to protect the structures from the effects of wind and water erosion. People are gradually coming to terms with the hi-tech structures. And they’re a small price to pay for preserving the temples for future generations.

Hal Saflieni Hypogeum
The Hypogeum, located in the urban, dockside town of Paola, is the jewel in Malta’s World Heritage crown. It is a unique, and vast underground structure, almost cave like, that was dug out of the limestone by man in c. 2500 B.C. It goes down three levels, so it is all the more an incredible feat since it would have been excavated in almost near darkness and with picks and tools made from antlers.

It is described as ‘architecture in the negative’ since it has a chamber that is a replica of what we believe the overground temple rooms may have looked like. The Hypogeum contained human remains and offered up exquisitely fine pottery, including a rare miniature form of a sleeping lady (now in the National Museum of Archaeology in Valletta). The Hypogeum’s use defies total explanation as it seems to have been both necropolis (burial site) and temple. The mystery surrounding it only adds to its attraction as a top visitor site.

If you intend to visit, you must book, and the earlier the better; the site only admits 80 people a day in small groups of no more than 10 because of the need to regulate the atmosphere inside this sensitive site. The visitor centre has a display and short film before you go on the guided tour below ground.

Photo: Jakov Cordina

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