Before the Temples

Prehistory relates to the period before written history.  The earliest concrete evidence of the first settlers dates to around 5,000 BC. This date was obtained from radiocarbon tests from a deposit at Skorba, on the outskirts of Mgarr, Malta.

Animal found bones show that sheep, goats and cattle were reared. Also spindle whorls suggest that people were also spinning yarn to make textiles.  Flints with a particular type of gloss indicates that they were used for cutting straw, and therefore used for harvesting. Querns point to the processing of crops, for example turning grain into flour.  This suggests a living based on mixed farming.

As can be seen in pottery styles and burial rites, the Maltese Islanders maintained strong cultural links with Sicily, but Maltese society also developed its own distinctively local flavours.

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