Malta - World Heritage Site

The Maltese Islands have three sites inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. These are the City of Valletta, the Megalithic Temples and the Hal Saflieni Hypogeum.

In all, seven megalithic temples are found on the islands of Malta and Gozo, each the result of an individual development. The two temples of Ggantija on the island of Gozo are notable for their gigantic Bronze Age structures. The Ggantija Temples are the oldest, free-standing monuments in the world and are a testament to the Island's inhabitation for at least 1,000 years before the famous Egyptian pyramids of Giza were constructed.

On the island of Malta, the temples of Hagar Qim, Mnajdra and Tarxien are unique architectural masterpieces, given the limited resources available to their builders. The Ta' Hagrat and Skorba complexes show how the tradition of temple-building was handed down in Malta. These temples were inscribed on the World Heritage List as a group and represent a unique architectural tradition that flourished on the Maltese Islands between 3600 and 2500BC.

The Hal Saflieni Hypogeum is a rock-cut underground complex that was used both as a sanctuary as well as for burial purposes by the temple builders. It was discovered during construction works in 1902. The three underground levels date from around 3600 to 2400 B.C.  The monument is considered one of the essential prehistoric monuments in the world.

The capital of Malta, Valletta, is inextricably linked to the history of the military and charitable Order of St John of Jerusalem. It was ruled successively by the Phoenicians, Greeks, Carthaginians, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs and the Order of the Knights of St John. Valletta’s 320 monuments, all within an area of 55 hectares, make it one of the most concentrated historic areas in the world.

VALLETTA: Valletta, The Fortress City, Citta' Umilissima, “a city built by gentlemen for gentlemen” is Malta's capital city: a living, working city, the administrative and commercial heart of the Islands.  Valletta is named after its founder, the respected Grand Master of the Order of St John, Jean Parisot de la Valette.  The magnificent fortress city grew on the arid rock of Mount Sceberras peninsula, which rises steeply from two deep harbours, Marsamxett and Grand Harbour. Started in 1566, Valletta was completed, with its impressive bastions, forts and cathedral, in the astonishingly short time of 15 years.

Valletta has many titles, all recalling its rich historical past. It is the “modern” city built by the Knights of St John; a masterpiece of the Baroque; a European Art City and a World Heritage City. Spanning an area of just around 55 hectares it is one of the most concentrated historic areas in the world.

The city is busy by day, yet retains a timeless atmosphere. The grid of narrow streets boasts some of Europe's finest art works, churches and palaces.

Hosting a vast cultural programme, walking around Valletta you’ll come across an intriguing historical site around every corner: votive statues, niches, fountains and coats of arms high up on parapets. Narrow side streets are full of tiny, quaint, shops and cafés, while Valletta’s main streets are lined with larger international branded shops for fashion, music, jewellery and much more.

History of Valletta 

History of a Baroque City: Valletta is named after its founder, the respected Grand Master of the Order of St John, Jean Parisot de la Valette, but the city really owes its birth to his arch enemy, Grand Turk Suleiman the Magnificent.

When the Knights arrived in Malta in 1530, they had settled in the small village of Birgu (Vittoriosa), which was protected by Fort St Angelo. They managed to enlarge the old St Elmo watchtower on the Sceberras Peninsula opposite, but their defences were still weak. The strategic importance of Mount Sceberras was to become all too evident during the Great Siege.

Valletta had been planned before the siege. But the plans could only be executed once a grateful Christendom had lavished riches on the Knights for their defeat of Suleiman. Pope Pius V and King Philip of Spain gave financial aid and loaned the services of an outstanding military engineer, the Italian, Francesco Laparelli.

The magnificent fortress city grew on the arid rock of Mount Sceberras peninsula, which rises steeply from two deep harbours, Marsamxett and Grand Harbour. Started in 1566, Valletta was completed, with its impressive bastions, forts and cathedral, in the astonishingly short time of 15 years.

A Modern City: Laparelli had a unique opportunity to create the perfect city. Valletta may not strike you as a modern city, but it is one of the first examples of town planning based on a grid pattern of streets.

The city catered well for all strata of society, from the Knights to their servants and trades people. Laparelli's design provided for fresh water to be piped in, and for sanitation; both advanced concepts for the time. The grid of streets allowed for fresh air from the two harbours to circulate easily in the narrow streets – a kind of city-scale air-conditioning.

Valletta is a fine example of a planned, 16th century city: unusual for the times, since urban centres mostly evolved from earlier settlements. The rocky Mount Sceberras on which it was built was not an easy location: it took considerable levelling before construction could begin. La Valette died in 1568, before the city was completed. By 1571, enough of the city was built to allow the Knights to transfer from Birgu.

Laparelli left Malta in 1570, but work was continued by the Maltese Architect Gerolamo Cassar. Cassar was responsible for most of the major early buildings from the Cathedral of St John to the Sacra Infermeria, the Auberges or Inns of Residence of the Knights and the Magisterial Palace.

By the turn of the 16th century, Valletta was a sizeable city. People from across the Islands came to live within the safety of its bastions.

Valletta was soon pre-eminent in the life of the Order and the Islands. However, the Three Cities, across the harbour, the first home to the Knights, retained economic importance because of their docks. Mdina, the old medieval capital, all but lost its role and became a backwater. It remained home to the Maltese nobility, descendents of the Sicilian and Spanish overlords.

World War II brought havoc to Malta. Valletta was badly destroyed by bombardment, but the city managed to withstand the war with many of its treasures, such as the Knights' masterpiece, St John's Cathedral, intact.

Today Valletta has a smaller population than before the war, but it is a bustling place as the Islands' main business centre and the seat of government

Hal Saflieni Hypogeum: The Hypogeum, or underground cavity, is a unique monument and superb example of architecture in the negative. Excavation has yielded a wealth of archaeological material including pottery, human bones, personal ornaments such as beads and amulets, little carved animals and larger figurines.

The Hypogeum consists of halls, chambers and passages hewn out of the living rock and covering some 500 square metres. The rock-cut chambers are of diverse shapes and sizes, finished to different standards of workmanship. The complex is grouped in three levels – the upper level (3600-3300 BC), the middle level (3300-3000 BC) and the lower level (3150 -2500 BC). The deepest room in the lower level is 10.6 metres under road surface.

The upper level consists of a large hollow with a central passage and burial chambers cut on each side. The middle level consists of various chambers very smoothly finished, which give the impression of built masonry.

Megalithic Temples of Malta: Each the result of an individual development, there are seven megalithic temples in Malta and Gozo, the oldest dating from 5,000BC.

The oldest freestanding temples in the world are of Ġgantija on the Island of Gozo, also notable for its gigantic Bronze Age structure.

On the Island of Malta, the Ħagar Qim (decorated with animals and goddesses carved from flint and obsidian), Mnajdra and Tarxien temples are unique architectural masterpieces, given the limited resources available to their builders. The Ta’ Ħaġrat and Skorba complexes show how the tradition of temple building was handed down in Malta.

Ggantija: Ggantija Temples in Xaghra, Gozo, are one of the most important archaeological sites in the world and date from around 3600 to 3200 BC. Due to the gigantic dimensions of the megaliths, in past centuries some locals believed that the temples were the work of giants. This particular temple site in Gozo bears witness to this ancient legend: its name, Ggantija, is Maltese for giant.

The Ggantija megalithic complex consists of two temples surrounded by a massive common boundary wall, which was built using the alternating header and stretcher technique, with some of the megaliths exceeding five metres in length and weighing over fifty tons. Built with rough, coralline limestone blocks, each temple contains five apses connected by a central corridor leading to the innermost trefoil section.

Hagar Qim: The temple of Hagar Qim (c. 3600 - 3200 BC) stands on a hilltop overlooking the sea and the islet of Filfla. The temple itself consists of a single temple unit, although it is not clear if it was originally constructed as a four or five-apse structure.

Other temple ruins stand a few metres away from the main temple and the forecourt and facade follow the pattern typical of temples across the Islands. Particularly noteworthy are the larger orthostats at the corners, which are notched to take the second of the horizontal courses above.

Various items of interest have been unearthed at Hagar Qim, notably a decorated pillar altar, two table-altars and some of the ‘fat lady’ statues on display in the National Museum of Archaeology.

Mnajdra: Mnajdra sits tucked in a hollow in the cliffs on Malta’s southern coast. The site is probably the most atmospheric of all of Malta’s temples, as it lies in an isolated position on a rugged stretch of coast overlooking the isle of Filfla.

Mnajdra is a complex site consisting of three temples overlooking an oval forecourt. The first and oldest temple dates back to 3600-3200 BC, while the most impressive of the temples is the third, constructed between 3150-2500 BC. This temple is perhaps the finest surviving on the Islands. The masonry here shows intricate knowledge of building techniques and excellent workmanship.

The middle temple was the last to be built and was inserted between the other two, set at a higher level.

The Lower Temple has a particular astronomical alignment and at the Equinox, (the 20th March and the 22nd September), the rays of the sun pass strategically through specific areas of the temple.

Skorba: Skorba comprises two temple remains and was left untouched during the first two phases of archaeological digs at temple sites in the early 19th and 20th centuries.

At Skorba, a typical three-apsed temple was built in 3600-3200 BC, replacing a village that had been inhabited since 5000-4300 BC. A second temple was added to the east in 3150-2500 BC, which was in a more ruinous state when found, but originally consisted of four apses and a central niche.

Skorba was occupied long before the temples were built and the earliest structure identified on the site dates to 5000-4300 BC. In the field to the east there are two rooms dating back to 4400-4100 BC. The irregularity of the floors and the absence of hearths seem to preclude the site’s domestic use. The group of figurines found in the northern room suggest that the building had a religious function.

Ta Hagrat Temples: Dating from 3600-3200 BC, the two Ta’ Ħagrat temples are amongst the earliest temple buildings in Malta and are extremely well preserved.

The larger dates to 3600-3200 BC and the smaller to 3300-3000 BC. The plentiful pottery found at this site suggests that these two temples were built on top of an earlier village. Finds from this site include a unique discovery – a small limestone model of a building.

The larger temple is set in the middle of a large semicircular forecourt and the impressive façade with a monumental doorway was reconstructed in 1937. Two steps lead up to the main entrance and a corridor flanked by huge uprights of coralline limestone. The corridor beyond the entrance is paved with large stone blocks placed with great accuracy.

Tarxien Temples: The Tarxien Temples date from 3600-2500 BC and are the most complex of all temple sites in Malta, consisting of four megalithic structures. The temples are renowned for the detail of their carvings, which include domestic animals carved in relief, altars, and screens decorated with spiral designs and other patterns. Of particular note is a chamber set into the thickness of the wall between the South and Central temples, which is famous for its relief of two bulls and a sow.

The site seems to have been used extensively for rituals, which probably involved animal sacrifice. Tarxien is also of great interest because it offers an insight into how the temples were constructed: stonerollers left outside the south temple were probably used for transporting the megaliths. Remains of cremation have also been found at the centre of the South temple at Tarxien, which indicates that the site was reused as a Bronze Age cremation cemetery.