|
Location: Near Ggantija,
Gozo, Malta. |
Grid Reference:
36.05˚ N, 14.26˚ E |
The Hypogeum II:
(Other Names).
Underneath, and in the middle of the
Xaghra circle,
archaeologists have unearthed a second Hypogeum. It contained approximately
70 bodies and is still being excavated, making viewing an almost
impossibility (2004).
It has been suggested that there may be
other 'Hypogeum's' under other significant Maltese sites (or other
stone circles).
...The hunt is on...
(Click
here for map of the site)
A
burial sequence was revealed in the middle of the Circle that continued
from the earliest Temple Period (Zebbug) 4100 BC to the latest (Tarxien)
2500 BC followed by a further phase of limited occupation most prominent
in the Tarxien Cemetery period 2500 - 1500 BC.
(1)
These
anthropomorphic artefacts were unearthed in the excavation. They are unlike
any other artefacts uncovered in Malta.
The Xhghra stone circle had enclosed a ritual
area, entered through a huge stone entrance which led the mourners
across a stone threshold and probably down steps into the rugged
caves. At the centre, was an area enclosed by elegant megalithic
trilithon altars and a massive stone bowl. The many natural caverns
and niches of the caves were divided off by walls and stone slabs.
(2)
Picture by Brochtorff (1825)
The caves of the
Xaghra
Circle were cut by underground water thousands of years before their use
for burial. Over the hundreds of years when they were employed for
burial, the structures became weakened and the prehistoric people
attempted to stabilise the falling roof with megalithic stone props.
The structure collapsed before 2000 BC, obliterating
the burials and stone alters. (2)
(Other Maltese sites)
(Other Underground Sites)
|
