Ras il-Wardija

The temple of Ras il-Wardija carved into the rock

Ras il-Wardija (meaning: "Highlands of the Guardian") is an ancient cult site and an archaeological excavation site on the island of Gozo, part of Malta . The ledge rises to a height of 28 m between Xlendi Bay and Dwejra Bay in the southwest of the island. He belongs to the Kerċem parish .

description

On the Ras il-Wardija there are numerous prehistoric ruins that indicate a strongly fortified Bronze Age settlement, similar to that of Baħrija on the main island of Malta .

The National Inventory of the Maltese Cultural Heritage lists a temple area from the Phoenician - Punic settlement phase of Gozo, which was used as a place of worship until the Roman period . This shows clear traces of weathering. The spatial proximity of a mithraium from Roman times testifies to the continued existence of Punic traditions on the Maltese islands into late antiquity.

Archaeological evidence

In 1964, the Missione Archaeologica Italiana a Malta started excavations on Ras il-Wardija. These showed that this is a complex religious monument that is interpreted as the cult site of a heavenly deity. The origins of this sanctuary go back to the Phoenician-Punic times.

The complex consists of several architectural elements:

a rectangular chamber
the outer corridor
a water reservoir
a bell-shaped fountain as well
an altar .

The archaeological finds were sparse and scattered. They cover a period from the Punic period to the 3rd century BC. BC to the Roman period of the 4th century AD

In the cliffs there is a stone-carved chamber, probably a mithraium from Roman times.

36.036347222222 14.186477777778Coordinates: 36 ° 2 ′ 10.8 " N , 14 ° 11 ′ 11.3" E

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d Ras il-Wardija. (PDF) In: National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands. Sovrintendenza tal-Patrimonju Kulturale, December 16, 2011, accessed on October 11, 2019 .
^ Lino Bugeja: Gozo - a historical and scenic cornucopia. In: Times of Malta. January 10, 2016, accessed October 11, 2019 .
^ Claudia Sagona: The Archeology of Malta . Cambridge University Press, 2015, ISBN 978-1-107-00669-0 , pp. 288 f .
^ Claudia Sagona: The Archeology of Malta . Cambridge University Press, 2015, ISBN 978-1-107-00669-0 , pp. 325 .

[Inventory-1] Ras il-Wardija. (PDF) In: National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands. Sovrintendenza tal-Patrimonju Kulturale, December 16, 2011, accessed on October 11, 2019 .

[2] Lino Bugeja: Gozo - a historical and scenic cornucopia. In: Times of Malta. January 10, 2016, accessed October 11, 2019 .

[3] Claudia Sagona: The Archeology of Malta . Cambridge University Press, 2015, ISBN 978-1-107-00669-0 , pp. 288 f .

[4] Claudia Sagona: The Archeology of Malta . Cambridge University Press, 2015, ISBN 978-1-107-00669-0 , pp. 325 .