Cave dwellers at Għar il-Kbir : Malta’s best documented troglodytic community

Abstract

During the medieval and Early Modern periods, countryside areas in northwest and northern Malta commonly provided shelter to troglodytic (cave-dwelling) communities. The adoption of a troglodytic lifestyle was made possible due to the prevailing geographies that provided shelter in the cavernous landscape within the Upper Coralline Limestone stratum, as well as the presence of adequate hydrological resources. Jean Quintin d’Autun is the first known author to have described this lifestyle in his Insulae Melitae Descriptio of 1536. Widespread disinterest in troglodytic habitations prevailed until recently, and it was only during the past three decades that a determined effort was made to document, interpret and contextualise the significance of Malta’s troglodytic past. Għar il-Kbir remains Malta’s best known troglodytic settlement, but knowledge on its inhabitants is scant. It is only through the Early Modern period writings of Athanasius Kircher, Gian Francesco Abela and Carlo Castone Della Torre Di Rezzonico that aspects relating to the customs, beliefs and traditions of the Għar il-Kbir dwellers became better known.