Ġgantija
UNESCO World Heritage Site / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Ġgantija (Maltese pronunciation: [dʒɡanˈtiːja], "Giantess") is a megalithic temple complex from the Neolithic era (c. 3600–2500 BC), on the Mediterranean island of Gozo in Malta. The Ġgantija temples are the earliest of the Megalithic Temples of Malta and are older than the pyramids of Egypt. Their makers erected the two Ġgantija temples during the Neolithic, which makes these temples more than 5500 years old and the world's second oldest existing manmade religious structures after Göbekli Tepe in present-day Turkey. Together with other similar structures, these have been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Megalithic Temples of Malta.
Location | Xagħra, Gozo, Malta |
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Coordinates | 36°02′50″N 14°16′09″E |
Type | Temple |
History | |
Material | Limestone |
Founded | c. 3600 BC; 5624 years ago |
Periods | Ġgantija phase |
Site notes | |
Excavation dates | 1827 and 1933–1959 |
Condition | Well-preserved ruins |
Ownership | Government of Malta |
Management | Heritage Malta |
Public access | Yes |
Website | Heritage Malta |
Official name | Ġgantija Temples |
Part of | Megalithic Temples of Malta |
Criteria | Cultural: (iv) |
Reference | 132ter-001 |
Inscription | 1980 (4th Session) |
Extensions | 1992, 2015 |
Area | 0.715 ha (77,000 sq ft) |
Buffer zone | 33 ha (0.13 sq mi) |
The temples are elements of a ceremonial site used in a fertility rite. Researchers have found that the numerous figurines and statues found on site are associated with that cult. According to local Gozitan folklore, a giantess who ate nothing but fava beans and honey bore a child from a man of the common people. With the child hanging from her shoulder, she built these temples and used them as places of worship.[1][2]