L’acqua nella cultura dei templi megalitici di Malta

Abstract

When the author started working on Maltese prehistory thirty years ago, he was always struck and intrigued by one particular aspect of archaeological prehistoric in Malta, that is, the apparent total absence of water, (of this precious element for human survival), within the archaeological sites themselves, and in the figurative iconography, especially in the culture and, more surprisingly, in the landscape, not only the ones adjacent to the sites but also in general. The author says 'apparent' because the reality could be, indeed it had to be quite different. The lack of water was even more unnatural in the culture of the megalithic temples, an extraordinary culture which flourished in a microinsular context and that would not have had the opportunity to flourish without the support of an effective and prosperous economic system. This system could not be based upon the lack of agriculture, which in its turn depended on water availability. The author admits that until a few years ago he did not see the solution to this puzzle, and ranked this mystery together with those mysteries that surround the Maltese prehistory. In the last few years, Instead, some of his young colleagues are engaging in innovative approaches in the study of the documentation already available, however using sources of information to support archaeology, such as, for example, the place names and modern means of technology (such as G.I.S.) that allow the ongoing process of the research.