Description

The islands of Malta are geographically small, but there is nothing diminutive about their past relics and monuments. Maltese antiquarians saw in these monuments testimonies of the ebb and flow of social groups and individuals, and often claimed special connections, real or otherwise, with landmark events in human history. Seeking a tangible link to their heritage, collectors, especially those of the 18th and 19th centuries, gathered pottery and other artefacts for their shelves. Many of these private collections of antiquities held in Malta are vast, but for the most part unknown beyond its shores. Although the majority of artefacts are of the Punic period, they do reflect the island's contacts with other ancient cultures and markets of the Mediterranean. This volume presents well over a thousand antiquities and is an extensive resource for those interested in Malta's rich cultural heritage. It forms a companion volume to C. Sagona's The Archaeology of Punic Malta (2002, Peeters), consolidating further the evidence presented in that detailed study.