Malta has the oldest built structures in the world

The Maltese islands hold the oldest built structures in the world, erected between 3600 and 2500 BC. The temples constitute an impressive sight and are worth a detour from the Three Cities.

The Hypogeum (Cemetery Street, 21805019/www.heritagemalta.org) is an underground burial site where about 7000 skeletons were discovered during excavations a century ago. A short walk away stand the Tarxien Neolithic Temples (Neolithic Temples Street, 216955 78/www.heritagemalta.org) - three temples intermeshed into one large complex. renowned for the detail of the carvings of their megalithic structures.

Two other temples are situated in the outskirts of Zurrieq on the south coast, on a windswept and rugged rocky plateau perched over the sea. The first temple, reached from the road is Hagar Qim (2142 4231/www.heritagemalta.org), a round structure built on the crest of a hill. The temple is intricate, with hidden chambers; the significance of these spatial arrangements is still to be understood. Less than five minutes' walk away, Mnajdra Temple (21424231/www.heritagemalta. org) is one of the smallest and most intimate of major temples in Malta. It is also one of the most intact and in some of its interior chambers only the roof has collapsed but the side walls survive.

A fascinating fact about these temples, particularly Mnajdra and Hagar Qim, is their astronomical alignment. The rays of the sun during sunrise of the first day of the four seasons enter into the lower temple of Mnajdra and light up the interior of the building.

On the Equinox days on March 20 and September 22 the sun's rays penetrate the temple's main doorway and light up the main axis. At the summer solstice (June 21), the rays of the sun light up the edge of a megalith to the left of the doorway, connecting the first pair of chambers to the inner chambers. At the winter solstice (December 21) , the same effect can be seen on the corresponding megalith on the right hand side. On these days, the temples are  opened to the public at sunrise to view this extraordinary event.

Although it is not known for certain whether these orientations were intentional, they are so systematic that it is very probable that at least some of the temples were carefully aligned with the sun, moon, and stars. In prehistoric agricultural societies, observation of the motion of the stars, the moon and sun could have been related to the changing seasons and times of planting and harvesting crops.

The mystery surrounding these alignments remains the subject of academic debate across the globe as it has been found that various prehistoric monuments in several countries have parts or the entire structure aligned towards a particular direction.

If you'd like to view these spectacular sights and are willing to wake up before dawn, join the guided tours of the Mnajdra and Hagar Qim Temples to mark the solstice and equinox. Contact Heritage Malta (2295 4312 www. heritagemalta.org) for more details. Pre-booking is essential and tickets are very limited.

Timeout