Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum
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The Hypogeum of Ħal Saflieni ( ) is a
Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...
subterranean structure dating to the
Saflieni phase The Saflieni phase is one of the eleven phases of Maltese prehistory, the fourth of five in the middle or Temple period. It is named for the Ħal-Saflieni Hypogeum, an underground temple complex now recognised as a World Heritage Site by UNE ...
(3300 – 3000 BC) in Maltese prehistory, located in Paola,
Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...
. It is often simply referred to as the Hypogeum, literally meaning " underground" in Greek. The Hypogeum is thought to have been a sanctuary and
necropolis A necropolis (: necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'' (). The term usually implies a separate burial site at a distan ...
, with the estimated remains of more than 7,000 people documented by archeologists, and is among the best preserved examples of the Maltese temple building culture that also produced the Megalithic Temples and Xagħra Stone Circle.


Etymology

This hypogeum (Hellenic Υπό+ Γαία meaning Under+ Earth) is named for the locality under which it lies, namely Ħal Saflieni, a village that no longer exists. ''Ħal'' means "village" and ''saflieni'' means "low"; as both words are of Arabo-Berber origin, the name "Ħal Saflieni" must appear after Muslims came to Malta.


History

The Hypogeum was discovered by accident in 1902 when workers cutting cisterns for a new housing development broke through its roof. The workers tried to hide the temple at first, but eventually it was found. The study of the structure was first conducted by Manuel Magri, who directed the excavations on behalf of the Museums Committee, starting from November 1903. During the excavations, a portion of the contents of the Hypogeum, including
grave goods Grave goods, in archaeology and anthropology, are items buried along with a body. They are usually personal possessions, supplies to smooth the deceased's journey into an afterlife, or offerings to gods. Grave goods may be classed by researche ...
and human remains, were emptied out and discarded without being properly catalogued. Magri's death in 1907 while conducting missionary work in
Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...
further complicated matters and his report on the Hypogeum was lost. Excavation continued under Sir Themistocles Zammit, who attempted to salvage what he could. Zammit began publishing a series of reports in 1910 and continued excavating until 1911, depositing his findings at the National Museum of Archaeology in
Valletta Valletta ( ; , ) is the capital city of Malta and one of its 68 Local councils of Malta, council areas. Located between the Grand Harbour to the east and Marsamxett Harbour to the west, its population as of 2021 was 5,157. As Malta’s capital ...
. The Hypogeum was first opened to visitors in 1908 while the excavations were ongoing. The four contemporary houses built on the site of the hypogeum were demolished to build a museum. Further excavations took place between 1990 and 1993 by Anthony Pace, Nathaniel Cutajar and Reuben Grima. The Hypogeum was then closed to visitors between 1991 and 2000 for restoration works and to arrange it for visits;Stacey McKenna
Malta’s Hypogeum, One of the World’s Best Preserved Prehistoric Sites, Reopens to the Public
''Smithsonianmag.com'', 23 May 2017
and since its reopening,
Heritage Malta Heritage Malta () is the Maltese national agency for museums, conservation practice and cultural heritage. Created by the Cultural Heritage Act, enacted in 2002, the national agency (along with the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage) replaced ...
(the government body that looks after historical sites) allows entry to only 80 people per day, while the site's microclimate is strictly regulated. In 2011, a more intensive program was launched to monitor the decay of the site. Scientific research on the Hypogeum is ongoing, and in 2014, an international team of scientists visited to study acoustics. The Hypogeum reopened in May 2017 after closing for a year to improve its environmental management system.


Description

Later archeological excavations indicate there was once a surface
shrine A shrine ( "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred space">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...: ''escri ...
that marked the entrance to the Hypogeum, with its subsequent destruction likely shielding the lower structure from discovery for thousands of years. Nothing remains of any potential enclosure that would have marked the entry to the Hypogeum. The underground structure may have originated from a natural cave, expanded over time by cutting directly into the rock with crude tools including antlers,
flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Historically, flint was widely used to make stone tools and start ...
,
chert Chert () is a hard, fine-grained sedimentary rock composed of microcrystalline or cryptocrystalline quartz, the mineral form of silicon dioxide (SiO2). Chert is characteristically of biological origin, but may also occur inorganically as a prec ...
and
obsidian Obsidian ( ) is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed when lava extrusive rock, extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. It is an igneous rock. Produced from felsic lava, obsidian is rich in the lighter element ...
. Burial chambers in the upper level of the Hypogeum date from the early phases of the Maltese Temple Period, with lower chambers dating from later. The site may have first been used as early as 4000 BC, and was likely used until around 2500 BC, based on pottery sample analysis and examination of human remains. The temple structure uses a careful direction of light from the surface to penetrate into the lower chambers, with intricate patterns painted on portions of the ceiling with
red ochre Ochre ( ; , ), iron ochre, or ocher in American English, is a natural clay earth pigment, a mixture of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. It ranges in colour from yellow to deep orange or brown. It is also the name of the col ...
, following motifs of spots, spirals and honeycombs. One of the main chambers, called "The Holy of Holies", appears to be oriented such that light from the
winter solstice The winter solstice, or hibernal solstice, occurs when either of Earth's geographical pole, poles reaches its maximum axial tilt, tilt away from the Sun. This happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere (Northern Hemisphere, Northern and So ...
illuminated its facade from the original opening above. A
resonance Resonance is a phenomenon that occurs when an object or system is subjected to an external force or vibration whose frequency matches a resonant frequency (or resonance frequency) of the system, defined as a frequency that generates a maximu ...
niche cut in the middle chamber, called the Oracle Room, was possibly designed to project
chant A chant (from French ', from Latin ', "to sing") is the iterative speaking or singing of words or sounds, often primarily on one or two main pitches called reciting tones. Chants may range from a simple melody involving a limited set of no ...
ing or drumming throughout the rest of the Hypogeum. A broad range of objects were recovered from the site, including intricately decorated pottery vessels, stone and clay beads, shell buttons,
amulet An amulet, also known as a good luck charm or phylactery, is an object believed to confer protection upon its possessor. The word "amulet" comes from the Latin word , which Pliny's ''Natural History'' describes as "an object that protects a perso ...
s, axe-heads, and carved figures depicting humans and animals. The most notable discovery was the Sleeping Lady, a clay figure thought to represent a
mother goddess A mother goddess is a major goddess characterized as a mother or progenitor, either as an embodiment of motherhood and fertility or fulfilling the cosmological role of a creator- and/or destroyer-figure, typically associated the Earth, sky, ...
. The figures range from abstract to realistic in style, with major themes thought to be related to
veneration of the dead The veneration of the dead, including one's ancestors, is based on love and respect for the deceased. In some cultures, it is related to beliefs that the dead have a afterlife, continued existence, and may possess the ability to influence the fo ...
and
spiritual transformation Spiritual transformation involves a fundamental change in a person's sacred or spiritual life. Psychologists examine spiritual transformation within the context of an individual's ''meaning system'', Israela Silberman (2005)Religion as a meanin ...
. Complex artistic techniques are also represented, as in the case of a single large pottery bowl which utilized both naturalistic and
stylized In the visual arts, style is a "...distinctive manner which permits the grouping of works into related categories" or "...any distinctive, and therefore recognizable, way in which an act is performed or an artifact made or ought to be performed a ...
themes, with one side realistically depicting bovines, pigs and goats, and the other side representing hatched animals hidden within complex geometric patterns. It is estimated that the remains of 7,000 individuals were found in the Hypogeum, and though many of the bones were lost early in excavation, most of the skulls were deposited at the
National Museum A national museum can be a museum maintained and funded by a national government. In many countries it denotes a museum run by the central government, while other museums are run by regional or local governments. In the United States, most nati ...
. A small percentage of the skulls have an abnormal cranial elongation, similar to priestly skulls from
Ancient Egypt Ancient Egypt () was a cradle of civilization concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in Northeast Africa. It emerged from prehistoric Egypt around 3150BC (according to conventional Egyptian chronology), when Upper and Lower E ...
, fueling speculation about the people who occupied the Hypogeum, and their practices and beliefs.


Structure

The Hypogeum is constructed entirely underground and consists of three superimposed levels hewn into soft
globigerina ''Globigerina'' () is a genus of planktonic Foraminifera, in the order of Rotaliida.Glob ...
limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...
, with its halls and chambers interconnected through a
labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth () is an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the h ...
ine series of steps, lintels and doorways. The upper level is thought to have been occupied first, with the middle and lower levels expanded and excavated later. Some of the middle chambers appear to share stylistic characteristics with the contemporaneous Megalithic Temples found across Malta.


Upper level

The first level is only one meter below the surface, and it is very different from tombs hidden in
Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...
, near
Rabat Rabat (, also , ; ) is the Capital (political), capital city of Morocco and the List of cities in Morocco, country's seventh-largest city with an urban population of approximately 580,000 (2014) and a metropolitan population of over 1.2 million. ...
. Some rooms are natural caves which were later extended. This level contains many rooms, some of which were used for burial.UNESCO World Heritage List. "Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum." https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/130


Middle level

The second level is a later expansion, with the rock hoisted up to the surface by
Cyclopean Cyclopean masonry is a type of masonry, stonework found in Mycenaean Greece, Mycenaean architecture, built with massive limestone boulders, roughly fitted together with minimal Engineering tolerance, clearance between adjacent stones and with clay ...
rigging. This level features several noted rooms: *Main Chamber: This chamber is roughly circular and carved out from rock. A number of
trilithon A trilithon or trilith is a structure consisting of two large vertical stones (posts) supporting a third stone set horizontally across the top ( lintel). It is commonly used in the context of megalithic monuments. The most famous trilithons a ...
entrances are represented, some blind, and others leading to another chamber. Most of the wall surface has received a red wash of
ochre Ochre ( ; , ), iron ochre, or ocher in American English, is a natural clay earth pigment, a mixture of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. It ranges in colour from yellow to deep orange or brown. It is also the name of the colou ...
. It was from this room that the Sleeping Lady was recovered. *
Oracle An oracle is a person or thing considered to provide insight, wise counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. If done through occultic means, it is a form of divination. Descript ...
Room: This is roughly rectangular and one of the smallest side chambers. It has the peculiarity of producing a powerful acoustic resonance from any vocalization made inside it. This room has an elaborately painted ceiling, consisting of spirals in red ochre with circular spots and spirals. *Decorated Room: Near the Oracle Room is another spacious hall, circular, with inward slanting smooth walls, richly decorated in a geometrical pattern of spirals. On the right side wall of the entrance is a
petrosomatoglyph A petrosomatoglyph is a supposed image of parts of a human or animal body in rock. They occur all over the world, often functioning as an important form of symbolism, used in religious and secular ceremonies, such as the crowning of kings. Some ...
of a human hand carved into the rock (Agius). *Holy of Holies: Perhaps the central structure of the Hypogeum, this room appears to be oriented toward the
winter solstice The winter solstice, or hibernal solstice, occurs when either of Earth's geographical pole, poles reaches its maximum axial tilt, tilt away from the Sun. This happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere (Northern Hemisphere, Northern and So ...
, which would have illuminated its facade from the original surface opening. No bones were recovered from this room during excavations. The focal point is a porthole within a
trilithon A trilithon or trilith is a structure consisting of two large vertical stones (posts) supporting a third stone set horizontally across the top ( lintel). It is commonly used in the context of megalithic monuments. The most famous trilithons a ...
, or structure consisting of two large vertical stones, which is in turn framed within a larger trilithon and yet another large trilithon. The
corbel In architecture, a corbel is a structural piece of stone, wood or metal keyed into and projecting from a wall to carry a wikt:superincumbent, bearing weight, a type of bracket (architecture), bracket. A corbel is a solid piece of material in t ...
led ceiling has been taken as a hint that Malta's surface temples, now uncovered, could have been roofed similarly.


Lower level

The lower story contained no bones or offerings.


Museum

The Hal Saflieni prehistoric Hypogeum site is a very popular attraction in Malta . Due to conservation considerations, only very few visitors ( 80 ) are allowed in every day. For this reason, it is highly recommended that tickets are booked on-line, months in advance. The site is open from 09:00 during the winter and 10:00 for the rest of the year. Twenty Last-Minute tickets can be purchased , one day before , but only from Fort St. Elmo in Valletta & the Gozo museum of Archeology. This is only applicable till noon. After noon, these last minute tickets can also be obtained from other
Heritage Malta Heritage Malta () is the Maltese national agency for museums, conservation practice and cultural heritage. Created by the Cultural Heritage Act, enacted in 2002, the national agency (along with the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage) replaced ...
sites/museums; these are National Museum of Archaeology, Domus Romana and Hypogeum itself. The site closed in September 2016 for a €1.1 million renovation partly financed by a grant from Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein. The renovated museum was inaugurated by Minister for Culture on 28 April 2017 and includes a new climate control system for the Hypogeum as well as an expanded visitor centre. The site reopened to visitors on 15 May 2017.


See also

* Xagħra Stone Circle *
Ġgantija Ġgantija (; "place of giants") is a megalithic temple complex from the Neolithic era (–2500 BC), on the List of islands in the Mediterranean, Mediterranean island of Gozo in Malta. The Ġgantija temples are the earliest of the Megalithic Temp ...
*
Petrosomatoglyph A petrosomatoglyph is a supposed image of parts of a human or animal body in rock. They occur all over the world, often functioning as an important form of symbolism, used in religious and secular ceremonies, such as the crowning of kings. Some ...
*
World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
s * List of World Heritage Sites in Western Europe


References


Further reading

* *
Details


External links

*
Unesco World Heritage Site

National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hypogeum Of Hal-Saflieni Megalithic Temples of Malta World Heritage Sites in Malta Paola, Malta 1902 archaeological discoveries National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands Sites managed by Heritage Malta Neolithic sites of Europe