I captured this boy reading attentively the information on a panel in front of these altars in one of the apses of the Ġgantija temples. Other altars are present in other niches. Made of solid cubic blocks these may originally have been decorated with spiral reliefs.
Ġgantija temples, like other neolithic temples around Malta, were possibly the site of a Fertility cult. According to local Gozitan folklore, a giantess built these temples and used them as places of worship. The finding of animal bones in the site suggests the site was used for animal sacrifice. A further proof is ‘the sacred fire’ - a stone hearth, some paving stones of which have been reddened by fire, which is found on the floor of a niche in the larger temple.
In 1827, the site was cleared of debris without having been properly examined. In time the ruins fell into decay. Luckily the German artist Brochtorff had painted a picture of the site within a year or two prior to removal of the debris, so there was a record of the site before clearance. In 1933, the Government expropriated the land for public benefit. The Museums Department conducted extensive archaeological work in 1933, 1936, 1949, 1956–57 and 1958-59.
Because the site is open to the elements, scaffoldings have been placed in some sensitive areas to keep the massive boulders from falling.
Thank you very much for looking and for your lovely comments on yesterday’s picture.
@sarasdadandmom@redsherpa@ruthhowell@dulciknit@pyrrhula@artseyanne thank you so much for your lovely comments. Anne, Hagar Qim and Mnajdra are two other temples which are very close to each other in Malta. They are better preserved and I suggest that viewing these would be of more interest.
May 31st, 2013
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