The
Għar Dalam phase (5200-4500 BCE) describes a period in
Maltese prehistoryThe culture of Malta is the culture of the Maltese islanders and reflects various societies that have come into contact with the Maltese Islands throughout the centuries, including neighbouring Mediterranean cultures, and the cultures of the nations that ruled Malta for long periods of time prior...
. Artifacts from this phase offer information about Early Neolithic human activity on the Mediterranean island of
MaltaMalta , officially the Republic of Malta , is a densely populated developed European country in the European Union. The Southern European island nation is an archipelago that includes the inhabited islands of Malta, Gozo and Comino, along with a number of smaller, uninhabited islands...
. Animal remains and human artifacts were excavated in Għar Dalam, to the southeast of the island near the village of
BirżebbuġaBirzebbugia is a small but flourishing seaside resort not far from Marsaxlokk in south-east Malta. It is approximately 8 miles from the City of Valletta. Popular among Maltese holiday-makers for decades, this village is perhaps best known for its important archaeological sites, especially Għar...
, in 1987. The Għar Dalam phase was followed by the
Grey Skorba phaseThe Grey Skorba phase follows the Early Neolithic Għar Dalam phase in Malta's prehistory. It is marked by a distinctive grey pottery, without decoration. Other remains from the period include seashells, bone ornaments and implements, stone tools and number of sling stones possibly used for hunting...
(4500-4100 BCE).
The pottery of the first settlers is known as Għar Dalam Ware, characterized by impressions around the rim and neck of simple bowls and globular jars.
Discussion
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The
Għar Dalam phase (5200-4500 BCE) describes a period in
Maltese prehistoryThe culture of Malta is the culture of the Maltese islanders and reflects various societies that have come into contact with the Maltese Islands throughout the centuries, including neighbouring Mediterranean cultures, and the cultures of the nations that ruled Malta for long periods of time prior...
. Artifacts from this phase offer information about Early Neolithic human activity on the Mediterranean island of
MaltaMalta , officially the Republic of Malta , is a densely populated developed European country in the European Union. The Southern European island nation is an archipelago that includes the inhabited islands of Malta, Gozo and Comino, along with a number of smaller, uninhabited islands...
. Animal remains and human artifacts were excavated in Għar Dalam, to the southeast of the island near the village of
BirżebbuġaBirzebbugia is a small but flourishing seaside resort not far from Marsaxlokk in south-east Malta. It is approximately 8 miles from the City of Valletta. Popular among Maltese holiday-makers for decades, this village is perhaps best known for its important archaeological sites, especially Għar...
, in 1987. The Għar Dalam phase was followed by the
Grey Skorba phaseThe Grey Skorba phase follows the Early Neolithic Għar Dalam phase in Malta's prehistory. It is marked by a distinctive grey pottery, without decoration. Other remains from the period include seashells, bone ornaments and implements, stone tools and number of sling stones possibly used for hunting...
(4500-4100 BCE).
Overview
The pottery of the first settlers is known as Għar Dalam Ware, characterized by impressions around the rim and neck of simple bowls and globular jars. This type of decoration is linked with the Stentinello Ware of
SicilySicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is an autonomous region of Italy. Several much smaller islands surrounding it are considered to be part of Sicily....
and with the larger family of
Impressed WareThe Bell-Beaker culture , ca. 2400 – 1800 BC, is the term for a widely scattered cultural phenomenon of prehistoric western Europe starting in the late Neolithic or Chalcolithic running into the early Bronze Age...
s found throughout the central and western Mediterranean. The cave in which they were discovered, Għar Dalam, was formed by water percolating through and dissolving the
Lower Coralline limestoneLimestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the mineral calcite . The deposition of limestone strata is often a by-product and indicator of biological activity in the geologic record...
(also called
Maltese/Gozitan Marble) during the
PleistoceneThe Pleistocene is the epoch from 2.588 million to 12 000 years BP covering the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
. Cultural debris rested beneath a thin calcareous lens; deeper strata uncovered numerous unique discoveries, including abundant bones of dwarf hippopotamus (
Hippopotamus melitensis), pigmy elephant (
Elephas falconeri) and giant swans. Human artifacts included flint tools, potsherds and
amuletAn amulet , a close cousin of the talisman consists of any object...
s mixed with the bones of domestic beasts such as sheep, goats and cattle.