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<< Our Photo Pages >> Tarxien - Ancient Temple in Malta in Mainland

Submitted by enkidu41 on Friday, 11 July 2008  Page Views: 23254

Multi-periodSite Name: Tarxien Alternative Name: Tarxien Temples
Country: Malta Island: Mainland Type: Ancient Temple
Nearest Town: Valletta  Nearest Village: Tarxien
Latitude: 35.869200N  Longitude: 14.512100E
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
3 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
3 Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
5 Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
no data

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I have visited· I would like to visit

Veritas larkwort would like to visit

htrismegistus visited on 1st Jan 2024 - their rating: Cond: 2 Amb: 5 Access: 5 Impressive as the other major Malta ruins, but this one as a lot of reliefs and carvings/decorations. Sometimes I wonder if the reliefs and decor were done hundreds of years after these structures were made, as they are not found everywhere.

emerald visited on 1st Nov 2022 - their rating: Cond: 3 Access: 5 Amazing site, now undercover to protect the limestone from further damage. Cared for by Heritage Malta. Audio and guidebook available

Catrinm visited on 17th Mar 2019 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Access: 5 Easily accessible and well worth visiting , not least for the Goddess statue.

43559959 visited on 2nd Jan 2018 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 2 Access: 5

SolarMegalith visited on 20th Mar 2013 - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 2 Access: 5

lucy78green visited on 4th Dec 2011 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 4 Access: 5

lscollinson visited on 21st Sep 2007 - their rating: Cond: 2 Amb: 3 Access: 5 Not in the best setting but definitely worth a trip if for the artwork alone.

blackfox visited on 1st Jan 1996 - their rating: Cond: 4 Amb: 5 Access: 4

HChavez visited - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 3 Access: 5

sem DrewParsons myf lizh kelpie have visited here

Average ratings for this site from all visit loggers: Condition: 3 Ambience: 3.5 Access: 4.89

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by enkidu41 : The celebrated prehistoric temple situated in the capital Valletta. (Vote or comment on this photo)
This is the most complex of the Maltese Temples but lacking the atmosphere of Ggantija or Mnajdra due to the modern housing. It is comprised of four immediately adjacent conjoined temples.

The first to be built at the far eastern end was the Small Temple, a 5-apse category but very dilapidated with the only visible remains being the west side.
Next in beyond a square court is the East Temple, a 4-apse temple, which has extraordinarily well-cut slab walls which have been provided with notches for moving. Two oracle holes open to the right. The front door has bar holes and V-perforations and there is a flight of steps apparently leading to either an upper chamber or the roof.
Next along is the third temple, the Middle or Central Temple, a 6-apse category. The 1st pair of apses (on the west) are massively floored but now boarded for protection. These are not mere paving slab but substantial blocks as can be seen by one that has been deliberately lifted for the purpose. The walls are of close-fitting orthostats which, although well preserved, are reddened by the fire which destroyed the building. There is a chamber in the wall to the right which depicts reliefs of two bulls and a sow. The inner part of this temple is cut off with a sill stone (now a replica) decorated with a pair of spirals. The 2nd pair of apses were masked by spiral-decorated screens now in Valletta Museum.
Next along is the final temple, the South Temple, a 4-apse category whose right–hand rear apse was adapted to provide a communicating passage with its neighbour. The doorway has bar holes and V-perforations in the door jambs. The main façade, with a small shrine with libation holes at either end, opened onto a forecourt with a large water cistern at its centre. Only the bench at the foot of the façade is original, all other features, including the doorway, being a modern reconstruction. Inside the doorway is a highly decorated area. This includes a spiral-decorated altar block with niche above on the right, close to it the giant goddess statue (or at least only her lower half !), and in the opposing apse more blocks decorated with spiral spirals and rows of animals. All these too are replicas.

Note: Important archaeological find at Tarxien, see latest comment
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Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by enkidu41 : The celebrated prehistoric temple situated in the capital Valletta. The western apse with a stone bowl with pitted decoration and a stone block with a hole, presumably for a post. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by riotgibbon : (1 comment - Vote or comment on this photo)

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by LizH : This orthostat from Tarxien, now in the archaeological museum in Valetta, has broad carved spirals. It stood opposite another, with similar, but slightly different spirals. I think this is the right hand one, but in all my careful notes, forgot to note this! (Vote or comment on this photo)

Tarxien Temple
Tarxien Temple submitted by DrewidDesktop : Tarxien Temple Malta (Vote or comment on this photo)

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by DrewParsons : Photographed during a visit in April 2000. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by lscollinson : Site in Mainland Malta which has some fine artwork.

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by 43559959 : Tarxien, site in Mainland Malta

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by DrewParsons : Photographed in April 2000

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by myf : Photo taken in April 2005

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by myf : Photo taken in April 2005. Animals carved on stone block

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by enkidu41 : The celebrated prehistoric temple situated in the capital Valletta. This is the giant statue of the amply proportioned goddess. When complete she stood over 9' tall. One can only muse over the appearance of the top half before she was got at by time, weather and above all the local farmers. (1 comment)

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by enkidu41 : The celebrated prehistoric temple situated in the capital Valletta.

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by Jon : Side altar and rope holes

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by Jon : Stair to roof or maybe even first floor

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by Jon : Carvings.

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by Jon : Carvings (3 comments)

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by Jon : Central altar with pitting and later spirals

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by Jon : Ceremonial bowl

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by riotgibbon : (1 comment)

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by 43559959 : Tarxien, site in Mainland Malta

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by 43559959

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by 43559959

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by Jonzjob : Tarxien temples 7 Semi official photo from the 1950s Image copyright: Jonzjob (John), hosted on Flickr and displayed under the terms of their API.

Tarxien
Tarxien submitted by Jonzjob : Tarxien temples 5 Semi official photo from the 1950s Image copyright: Jonzjob (John), hosted on Flickr and displayed under the terms of their API.

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"Tarxien" | Login/Create an Account | 13 News and Comments
  
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Ritual Failure and the Temple Collapse of Prehistoric Malta by Andy B on Thursday, 02 November 2017
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Chapter 4 - Ritual Failure and the Temple Collapse of Prehistoric Malta - Caroline Malone and Simon Stoddart

Part of Ritual Failure
Edited by Vasiliki G. Koutrafouri & Jeff Sanders Sidestone Press (2013)

With a foreword by Timothy Insoll and a discussion by Richard Bradley

Free download available here
https://www.sidestone.com/books/ritual-failure
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Monuments in search of a landscape: the landscape context of monumentality in Malta by Andy B on Monday, 19 June 2017
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Grima, R.; (2005) Monuments in search of a landscape: the landscape context of monumentality in Late Neolithic Malta. Doctoral thesis, University of London. PDF Download (20MB)

From the mid-4th to the mid-3rd millennium BC, the Maltese archipelago was characterized by a dense concentration of monumental activity. Archaeological research has generally focussed on the monumental buildings themselves, paying less attention to the environment that surrounded these structures. The present thesis is aimed at addressing this lacuna.

The history of approaches to Maltese prehistory is reviewed, and it is argued that the neglect of the landscape setting is related to the practice of archaeology in a colonial context.

Chapter 3 considers the physical characteristics and dynamics of the island environment. The landscape context of megalithic buildings is analysed using a Geographical Information Systems (GIS) model of the archipelago.

Chapter 4 uses a bivariate approach, while Chapter 5 uses multivariate techniques. A number of environmental variables that influence site location are identified, and a model for the choice of monument location is proposed. It is demonstrated that the location of megalithic monuments was closely determined by windows of opportunity in the natural landscape. The resulting insights into the decision-making processes of this period contribute to a better understanding of the priorities and values of the builders. It is argued that megalithic monuments played an important role in transforming natural divisions in the landscape into cultural units of organisation.

The following chapters continue the analysis at a different scale, focussing on the buildings themselves. The organisation of architectural space and the deployment of images within these buildings are examined. It is argued that these spaces and images make ordered references to the island environment. This relationship may be better understood in the light of the landscape setting of the buildings. A fresh interpretative model for this evidence is proposed, where it is argued that these architectural forms may be better understood in terms of symbolic storage, movement and performance.

http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/1444725/
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Re: Tarxien Temples: past, present and future by Jonzjob on Friday, 12 June 2015
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We have just returned from our second holiday in Malta and we managed to get and have a look around the temples the day before they closed for the work on the 'tent', etc.

My main reason for wanting to visit the site was because as a youngster of 10 I used to play in the temples. That was in 1954!!! My father was stationed at Luqa and we lived just a 200 yards or so away in Paula. The to visit. Hypogeum was even closer and I used to play in there too!! Now you need to book months in advance.

I have some photos, which according to Heritage Malta, are official photos from the 50s and I would like to be able to post them for you, but I have no idea as to how?? Single syllable words for how to please.. We visited Malta Heritage and I gave them a copy, on CD, of all of the photos, Tarxien and the Hypogeum, and they very kindly gave us a couple of complementary tickets for Hagar Qim, an incredible place! Tarxien is to have the same kind of 'tent' to protect it.
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Video of Tarxien Temples by Andy B on Sunday, 14 February 2010
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Important archaeological find in Tarxien by Anonymous on Friday, 11 July 2008
An archaeological discovery described as the most important in 18 years has been made at the site of the Tarxien temples.

Malta Environment Planning Authority (Mepa) officials discovered megaliths and other remains, which are most probably prehistoric, during development works within the buffer zone of the Neolithic temples.

The site was described by archaeologist Kevin Borda as the most important one since a burial ground was unearthed at the Brockdorff Circle in Xagħra in 1990. It lies within a plot of land measuring 25 by eight metres towards the back of the plot.

The megaliths and boulders were found together with pottery shards made up of rims, handles and bases in an area measuring roughly four by four metres. The shards have scratched and incised motifs which date them to the Temple Period.

The discovery was made during a routine inspection by the Heritage Planning Unit within the Forward Planning Division at Mepa, following the issue of a permit for the re-development of an existing building within the buffer zone. The zone was scheduled by Mepa in 1998.

During the inspection it was noted that demolition and site clearance works had uncovered a number of features which date back to 4,100-2,500 B.C.

"The importance of the site is enhanced by the possibility that there are other structures beneath the intensive building works that were carried out in the 1980s in the Tarxien area," Mr Borda said.

In line with the Cultural Heritage Act, 2002, Mepa has submitted the information to the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage which has confirmed the interpretation of the features as identified by the Heritage Planning Unit. The agencies are now collaborating to investigate the features and ensure their preservation.

Source:
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20080708/local/important-archaeological-find-in-tarxien
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Re: 5,000-year-old graffiti at Tarxien Temples to be saved by Anonymous on Tuesday, 01 April 2008
I WAS BORN AT TARXIEN AT NEOLTIC TEMPLE STR I WENT TO SCHOOL ACROSS THE ROAD FROM THE TEMPLE I WAS AN ALTAR BOY AT THE CHURCH NEXT TO THE TEMPLES NOW I AM 65 YEARS OF AGE AND I AM PR TOBE MALTESE AND TARXIENES
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Re: 5,000-year-old graffiti at Tarxien Temples to be saved by tfar on Tuesday, 24 July 2007
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You can watch a short video description of the Tarxien Temples complex on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NnUON_RzyE
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Re: 5,000-year-old graffiti at Tarxien Temples to be saved by coldrum on Friday, 02 February 2007
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Action taken to save graffiti on 5000-year old megaliths

Heritage Malta has moved two unique megaliths at Tarxien Temples in a bid to save what could possibly be the oldest representations of sea-faring vessels ever found. The initiatives forms part of a conservation project on Tarxien Temples funded by Bank Of Valletta.

Other megaliths decorated with relief carvings depicting spirals, animals and other designs were moved to the National Museum of Archaeology in the 1950s. The megaliths bearing graffiti of ships were left on site as they appeared to be in a good state of preservation.

However, continuous exposure to fluctuating temperatures, wind, rainfall and rising damp were leading to the rapid deterioration of these megaliths, therefore threatening the preservation of the graffiti. Extensive studies were carried out by the Scientific Committee for the Conservation of the Megalithic Temples, set up by the Ministry for Culture and Tourism in 2004. Following these studies, the Committee recommended that the so-called ship graffiti megaliths be moved indoors.

The megaliths were first treated by Heritage Malta conservators so that no more material is lost from their surfaces. An excavation close to the megaliths was also carried out by the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage. This excavation enabled a study of the megaliths' foundations and contributed to the design of the method that was to be used for their transportation.

The transfer of the megaliths involved a delicate operation that involved both conservation and safety issues. Conservators and other professionals from Heritage Malta oversaw the complete assignment .

Heritage Malta conservators will now be able to carry out additional interventions on the megaliths to ensure their preservation. The ship graffiti megaliths have been placed within the existing visitors' building at the Tarxien Temples where they can be viewed by visitors. The megaliths will eventually be displayed within the new Visitor Centre which will be built close to the site as part of the BOV Tarxien Temples Project.

di-ve.
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5,000-year-old graffiti at Tarxien Temples to be saved by Anonymous on Friday, 20 October 2006
5,000-year-old graffiti at Tarxien Temples to be saved
Heritage Malta is currently undertaking the preservation of two unique megaliths at Tarxien Temples as part of the BOV Tarxien Temples Project. These megaliths are significant because they bear witness to the vessels that transported the very first people to the Maltese Islands, and may well be the oldest representations of ships or boats ever discovered.

The Tarxien Temples, dating back to around 3600BC, hold an impressive number of prehistoric works of art, consisting mostly of megaliths carved in relief to depict various animals, spirals and other intricate designs.

The majority were moved indoors, to the National Museum of Archaeology, in 1956 to prevent deterioration from exposure to the elements.

The so-called ship graffiti megaliths were not removed from the site at the time as they appeared to be in good condition.

However, continuous exposure to fluctuating temperatures, wind, rainfall and humidity, have led to the rapid deterioration of these megaliths. Should they be left on site the graffiti will certainly be lost.

More: Malta Independent
http://www.independent.com.mt/news.asp?newsitemid=40601
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Re: Tarxien by Giselle on Thursday, 20 July 2006
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As a Maltese living in this village I am very proud of this place as it is a world heritage. I would also suggest that visitors could visit the Parish Church because it is another architectural jewel as well as another church right next to the temples. A church dedicated to the Resurrection of Christ or as the locals call it, "Knisja ta' l-Erwieh". If you want further details, you can visit, Knisja ta' l-Erwieh
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Re: Tarxien by Anonymous on Sunday, 09 April 2006
Condition:4
Ambience:4
Access:5
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Tarxien Temples: past, present and future by Andy B on Wednesday, 08 March 2006
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by Katya Stroud, Curator – World Heritage Sites.

Although the Tarxien Temples may not be the most photogenic archaeological site of the Maltese Islands, they nonetheless offer a stimulating experience for visitors. The temples in fact hold the largest number of exceptional examples of prehistoric art and attest to an extraordinary society that produced astounding advances in art, technology and architecture, some 5,000 years ago.

Unlike the other extensive prehistoric sites such as Ggantija, Mnajdra or Hagar Qim Temples, Tarxien Temples do not have a monumental bearing on their surrounding landscape; on the contrary, they have been rather dwarfed by the urban development which has, over time, encroached within metres from the site.

The site was discovered in 1913 when local farmers informed Sir Themistocles Zammit, Malta’s first Director of Museums, that they struck large blocks of stone while ploughing their field. At the time, Zammit was completing excavations at the Hal Saflieni Hypogeum, and he requested the farmers to dig a trench in their field.

This led to the discovery of two large stone blocks and a quantity of pottery sherds. Consequently, Sir Temi Zammit excavated the site between 1915 and 1919, bringing to light an extensive megalithic site and putting our understanding of Maltese prehistory on a solid foundation.

Excavations started by exposing the South Temple of the Tarxien complex, excavating the cremation cemetery inserted into the ruins in the Early Bronze Age, then continuing successively with the Central, East and Early Temples. Further limited excavations were also conducted in various parts of the temple complex between 1921 and 1958.

This site consists in four principal megalithic structures. The small temple at the eastern end of the site, which originally consisted in five apses, was the first to be built some time between 3,600 and 3,200BC. The South and East Temples were then built in the Tarxien Phase (ca 3,000-2,500BC), while the six-apsed Central Temple was the last to be constructed. The South Temple is renowned for its highly-finished carvings, which include domestic animals carved in relief, and various spiral designs. A striking feature within this building is the remains of a colossal statue. Within the thickness of the wall between the South and Central Temples are the famous reliefs of two bulls and a sow with piglets.

The site seems to have been used extensively for rituals; animal bones and a flint blade were found within a decorated altar in the South Temple, suggesting that animal sacrifice formed part of the activities that took place within the building during the Temple Period. After the end of the Temple Culture the site was put to a different use, becoming the site of a cremation cemetery during the Bronze Age.

The Tarxien Temples have recently been the focus of extensive conservation studies and preparations for improved visitor facilities through an agreement between the Bank of Valletta and Heritage Malta.

With the help of the Bank of Valletta, Heritage Malta is slowly turning this archaeological site into an exciting discovery for all its visitors, while ensuring that this experience will be shared with future generations. The BOV Tarxien Temples Project, launched in September 2003, envisages the application of the latest technology for the preservation of this unique prehistoric site, as well as the construction of a visitors’ centre that will enable visitors to understand, enjoy and appreciate the value of this monument.

Some of the latest environmental monitoring equipment has been installed within a number of chambers as well as in the immediate vicinity of the monument. This equipment provides precise data on the environment at the site including wind speed and direction, humidity, rainfall, solar radiation, barometric pressure and temperature. This data will be analysed by Heritage Malta’s conservation specia

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