The Tarxien Cemetery phase is one of the eleven phases of

Maltese prehistory Maltese may refer to: * Someone or something of, from, or related to Malta * Maltese alphabet * Maltese cuisine * Maltese culture * Maltese language, the Semitic language spoken by Maltese people * Maltese people, people from Malta or of Malte ...

. It is named for the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

burials on the site of the Tarxien temple complex near the village of

Ħal Tarxien Tarxien ( mt, Ħal Tarxien) is a town in the South Eastern Region of Malta. Its population stood at 8583 in March 2014. The town is most notable for the Tarxien Temples, a megalithic temple complex which is among the oldest freestanding structu ...

. The Tarxien Cemetery phase, from approximately 2500 to 1500 BCE, follows the

Tarxien phase The Tarxien phase is one of the eleven phases of Maltese prehistory. It is named for the temple complex discovered near the village of Ħal Tarxien, and now recognised as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The Tarxien phase, from approximately ...

, the last phase of the Temple period during which the principal

megalithic temples of Malta The Megalithic Temples of Malta ( mt, It-Tempji Megalitiċi ta' Malta) are several prehistoric temples, some of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites, built during three distinct periods approximately between 3600 BC and 2500 BC on the island coun ...

were built. The culture is characterised not by large-scale temple building, but by

dolmen A dolmen () or portal tomb is a type of single-chamber megalithic tomb, usually consisting of two or more upright megaliths supporting a large flat horizontal capstone or "table". Most date from the early Neolithic (40003000 BCE) and were somet ...

s and cremation cemeteries.

References

Bronze Age cultures of Europe Archaeological cultures of Southern Europe Archaeological cultures in Malta Pre-Indo-Europeans Megalithic Temples of Malta Maltese prehistory {{Malta-stub