Archaeological wonders! Uncovering Tal-Qadi, one of Malta’s hidden megalithic gems
While hiking in the green area on the outskirts of Naxxar between Burmarrad and Salina, you may have come across the remains of a megalithic temple without even realising it!
Tal-Qadi temple’s poor condition renders it almost unrecognisable as an archaeological site, however the outline of the temple is still visible, with remains of the central area with two apses distinguishable to the trained eye. The temple probably had two other apses, which was typical of the late temple period.
Tal-Qadi is interestingly the only Maltese temple that is oriented to the northeast. This may be due to the terrain that it is built on – it has a steep slope in the southeast direction, which is the orientation that most other temples have.
The site was first excavated in 1927 by Sir Temi Zammit, but it’s possible that the site of the temple was in use as early as 4000 BC during the Ġgantija phase of Maltese prehistory, with the temple itself being built later, during the Tarxien phase between 3300 and 3000 BC. There is further evidence of the temple being used even later, between 2500 and 1500 BC, in the form of pottery shards from that era.
Have you ever seen the Tal-Qadi temple remains?