The late prehistory of Malta: Essays on Borġ in-Nadur and other sites

Borġ in-Nadur, on the south-east coast of the island of Malta, is a major multi-period site, with archaeological remains that span several thousand years. In the course of the Late Neolithic, the steep-sided ridge was occupied by a large megalithic temple complex that was re-occupied in the succeeding Bronze Age. In the course of the second millennium BC, the ridge was heavily fortified by a massive wall to protect a settlement of huts. Excavations were carried out here in 1881 and again in 1959. This volume brings together a number of contributions that report on those excavations, providing an exhaustive account of the stratigraphy, the pottery, the lithic assemblages, the bones, and the molluscs. Additional studies look at other sites in Malta and in neighbouring Sicily in an effort to throw light on the late prehistory of the south-central Mediterranean at a period when connections with regions near and far were increasing. The volume forms a companion to another monograph which concentrated on the temple remains at Borġ in-Nadur (D. Tanasi and N. C. Vella (eds), Site, artefacts and landscape: prehistoric Borġ in-Nadur, Malta. Praehistorica Mediterranea 3. Monza: Polimetrica, 2011). About the Editors: Davide Tanasi (Ph.D.) is Professor of Archaeology at Arcadia University, The College of Global Studies - Arcadia Sicily Center. His research interests include Mediterranean prehistory, island archaeology, archaeometry of ancient ceramics, computer graphics in archaeology, and digital communication of cultural heritage. He has authored a hundred scientific papers in these fields and produced 3D documentaries about Sicilian archaeology and cultural heritage. His publications include La Sicilia e l’arcipelago maltese nell’eta del Bronzo Medio (Palermo, 2008) and Site, Artefacts and Landscape: Prehistoric Borġ in-Nadur, Malta with Nicholas C. Vella (Monza, 2011). He is editor of the international scientific journal Open Archaeology (De Gruyter) and since 2012, he has been directing the Field School in Archaeology of Arcadia University in Sicily. Nicholas C. Vella is Senior Lecturer and Head of the Department of Classics and Archaeology at the University of Malta, and works on Mediterranean history and archaeology. He has co-edited another volume of essays on Malta’s late prehistory called Site, Artefacts and Landscape: Prehistoric Borġ in- Nadur, Malta with Davide Tanasi (Monza, 2011) and contributed, with him, to the Cambridge Prehistory of the Bronze and Iron Age Mediterranean edited by P. van Dommelen and B. Knapp (Cambridge, 2014). He edits the Malta Archaeological Review, and co-directs excavations at the Żejtun Roman Villa (Malta). He is also co-investigator of the FRAGSUS project, funded by the European Research Council, that is examining the environmental and cultural background of prehistoric Malta. Table of Contents INTRODUCTION (Davide Tanasi and Nicholas C. Vella) Part I: The site and finds: 1. The excavations by David H. Trump, 1959 (Nicholas C. Vella) 2. A defensive wall with towers at Borġ in-Nadur (Giuseppe Terranova) 3. The pottery from excavation campaigns of David H. Trump (1959) at the settlement of Borġ in-Nadur (Davide Tanasi) 4. Archaeometric characterization of Middle Bronze Age pottery from the settlement at Borġ in-Nadur (Germana Barone, Paolo Mazzoleni, Simona Raneri, Davide Tanasi, Alessandro Giuffrida) 5. A leaf impression on a pottery sherd from the settlement at Borġ in-Nadur: a note (Giuseppe Baiamonte) 6. The stone artefacts from the settlement at Borġ in-Nadur (Damiano Bracchitta) 7. The prehistoric shells and fossils from Borġ in-Nadur (Katrin Fenech and Patrick J. Schembri) 8. Skeletal remains from Borġ in-Nadur (Andrea Messina and Davide Tanasi) Part II: Additional studies: 9. The Early Bronze Age in the Maltese islands (Alberto Cazzella and Giulia Recchia) 10. The Bronze Age settlement at il-Qlegħa tal-Baħrija, Malta: notes on the rock-cut features (David Cardona and MariaElena Zammit) 11. Borġ in-Nadur pottery abroad: a report from the Sicilian necropoleis of Thapsos and Matrensa (Davide Tanasi) 12. Sacred stones: meaning visitors and spaces at Borġ in-Nadur (Iona Muscat) Annotation Bor in-Nadur, on the south-east coast of the island of Malta, is a major multi-period site, with archaeological remains that span several thousand years. In the course of the Late Neolithic, the steep-sided ridge was occupied by a large megalithic temple complex that was re-occupied in the succeeding Bronze Age. In the course of the second millennium BC, the ridge was heavily fortified by a massive wall to protect a settlement of huts. Excavations were carried out here in 1881 and again in 1959. This volume brings together a number of contributions that report on those excavations, providing an exhaustive account of the stratigraphy, the pottery, the lithic assemblages, the bones, and the molluscs. Additional studies look at other sites in Malta and in neighbouring Sicily in an effort to throw light on the late prehistory of the south-central Mediterranean at a period when connections with regions near and far were increasing. The volume forms a companion to another monograph which concentrated on the temple remains at Bor in-Nadur (D. Tanasi and N. C. Vella (eds), Site, artefacts and landscape: prehistoric Bor in-Nadur, Malta. Praehistorica Mediterranea 3. Monza: Polimetrica, 2011).About the Editors:Davide Tanasi (Ph.D.) is Professor of Archaeology at Arcadia University, The College of Global Studies - Arcadia Sicily Center. His research interests include Mediterranean prehistory, island archaeology, archaeometry of ancient ceramics, computer graphics in archaeology, and digital communication of cultural heritage. He has authored a hundred scientific papers in these fields and produced 3D documentaries about Sicilian archaeology and cultural heritage. His publications include La Sicilia e l'arcipelago maltese nell'eta del Bronzo Medio (Palermo, 2008) and Site, Artefacts and Landscape: Prehistoric Bor in-Nadur, Malta with Nicholas C. Vella (Monza, 2011). He is editor of the international scientific journal Open Archaeology (De Gruyter) and since 2012, he has been directing the Field School in Archaeology of Arcadia University in Sicily.Nicholas C. Vella is Senior Lecturer and Head of the Department of Classics and Archaeology at the University of Malta, and works on Mediterranean history and archaeology. He has co-edited another volume of essays on Malta's late prehistory called Site, Artefacts and Landscape: Prehistoric Bor in- Nadur, Malta with Davide Tanasi (Monza, 2011) and contributed, with him, to the Cambridge Prehistory of the Bronze and Iron Age Mediterranean edited by P. van Dommelen and B. Knapp (Cambridge, 2014). He edits the Malta Archaeological Review, and co-directs excavations at the ejtun Roman Villa (Malta). He is also co-investigator of the FRAGSUS project, funded by the European Research Council, that is examining the environmental and cultural background of prehistoric Malta Borġ in-Nadur, on the south-east coast of the island of Malta, is a major multi-period site, with archaeological remains that span several thousand years. In the course of the Late Neolithic, the steep-sided ridge was occupied by a large megalithic temple complex that was re-occupied in the succeeding Bronze Age. In the course of the second millennium BC, the ridge was heavily fortified by a massive wall to protect a settlement of huts. Excavations were carried out here in 1881 and again in 1959. This volume brings together a number of contributions that report on those excavations, providing an exhaustive account of the stratigraphy, the pottery, the lithic assemblages, the bones, and the molluscs. Additional studies look at other sites in Malta and in neighbouring Sicily in an effort to throw light on the late prehistory of the south-central Mediterranean at a period when connections with regions near and far were increasing. The volume forms a companion to another monograph which concentrated on the temple remains at Borġ in-Nadur (D. Tanasi and N. C. Vella (eds), Site, artefacts and landscape: prehistoric Borġ in-Nadur, Malta. Praehistorica Mediterranea 3. Monza: Polimetrica, 2011). Cover 1 Title Page 3 Copyright Page 4 Dedication 5 Contents 7 INTRODUCTION by Davide Tanasi and Nicholas C. Vella 14 1. Archaeological excavations at the prehistoric settlementof Borġ in-Nadur: David H. Trump’s 1959 campaigns by Nicholas C. Vella 20 2. A defensive wall with towers at Borġ in-Nadur by Giuseppe Terranova 38 3. The pottery from the excavation campaigns of David Trump (1959) by Davide Tanasi 48 4. Archaeometric characterization of Middle Bronze Age pottery from the settlement at Borġ in-Nadur by Germana Barone, Paolo Mazzoleni, Simona Raneri, Davide Tanasi, Alessandro Giuffrida 112 5. A leaf impression on a pottery sherd from the settlement at Borġ in-Nadur: a note by Giuseppe Baiamonte 126 6. The stone artefacts by Damiano Bracchitta 128 7. The prehistoric shells and fossils by Katrin Febech and Oatrick J. Schembri 134 8. Skeletal remains by Andrea Messina and Davide Tanasi 140 9. The Early Bronze Age in the Maltese Islands by Alberto Cazzella and Giulia Recchia 152 10. The Bronze Age settlement at il-Qlejgħa tal-Baħrija, Malta: notes on the rock-cut features by David Cardona and MariaElena Zammit 174 The Borg in-Nadur pottery abroad by Davide Tanasi 186 12. Sacred stones: managing visitors and spaces by Iona Muscat 198 Index of places 210 Index of names 212 Borġ,in-Nadur;,Malta;,Prehistory Borġ in-Nadur,Malta,Prehistory Borġ in-Nadur, on the south-east coast of Malta, is a major multi-period site, with archaeological remains that span several thousand years. In the course of the Late Neolithic, the steep-sided ridge was occupied by a large megalithic temple complex that was re-occupied in the succeeding Bronze Age. In the course of the second millennium BC, it was heavily fortified by a massive wall to protect a settlement of huts. Excavations were carried out here in 1881 and again in 1959. This volume brings together a number of contributions that report on those excavations, providing an exhaustive account of the stratigraphy, the pottery, the lithic assemblages, the bones and the molluscs Borg in-Nadur, Malta, is a major multi-period site, with archaeological remains that span several thousand years. Excavations were carried out here in 1881 and again in 1959. This volume provides an exhaustive account of the stratigraphy, the pottery, the lithic assemblages, the bones, and the molluscs.