Dolmen at Santa Margerita

Cultural heritage is the evidence of our forefathers living in this small island. The evidence
left behind from our ancestors gives us an identity of who we are today as Maltese citizens,
therefore as stated by UNESCO we must preserve our cultural heritage not only for the
present but also for future generation to know who and what came before them. With the help
of modern daily needs, our present generation can be easily educated and informed, as it is
our duty to safeguard our heritage.
UNESCO, (1989.), defines cultural heritage as
" ... the entire corpus of material signs- either artistic or symbolic - handed on by the past to
each culture and, therefore, to the whole of humankind. As a constituent part of the
affirmation and enrichment of cultural identities, as a legacy belonging to all humankind, the
cultural heritage gives each particular place its recognizable features and is the storehouse of
human experience. The preservation and presentation of the cultural heritage are therefore a
corner-stone of any cultural policy."
The buildings that I chose to analyse are, the two Dolmen located at Wied Filep, a stone
throw away from Santa Margerita housing estates, which form part of Mosta.

This archeological site, according to Scerri, J. L., (1996.), dates us back to the prehistoric
time in the early Bronze Age Period (c.2500 - c.700 BC). In fact this is one of the little
evidence that exists today in Mosta, which tracks us back to that period. According to
Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, (2007.), the word 'Dol-men' derived from two Breton (a
Celtic language) terms denotation 'Stone-table'. Every Dolmen consists of two huge stones
vertically placed (roughly 3.657 meters by 1.524 meters wide) serving as a base for the third
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massive stone to be placed horizontally on top of the two other stones, forming a 'stone-table'
structure. Due to the findings that archeologists found under the Dolmen, such as pottery,
they were able to conclude that, they were prehistoric megalith tombs. In fact their function
was to hold the remains of the dead. They also concluded that some of the Dolmens were
used again for secondary funeral purpose. The discovery of pottery under these 'tablestructures' in Malta, helped the archeologists to attribute these monuments to Tarxien
cemetery culture.
According to Regester, R., (n.d.), all cultural heritages that is tangible, has cultural
importance because it forms part of the heritage of any population and civilization. Therefore,
one must protect, preserve and may be restore these inheritances, not only for the people
living in that particular district but also to make them accessible to each and every individual
in the world. Unlike some of the natural resources that are renewable, all cultural heritages
are not. Consequently, one must ensure an ongoing preservation process for the present and
future generation yet to come to enjoy these wonderful structures.
These megalithic ruins have a substantial amount of value to the Maltese citizens. Before one
starts to conserve these building's values, one has to identify them and try to make the most
out of them so that they would be aware of the great importance these megalithic tomb
structures have. It was sited that:
"All historic buildings have a set of values developed from their origins and throughout their
history. These values can be analysed to extract the most important elements to be preserved.
Analysing the values of our built heritage will allow us to create better decision-making
process." (Robles, 2010, p.146)
Robles (2010) further claims that, such values that a historical building can be attributed to,
are "structural, constructional, functional, aesthetic, formal, historical, and symbolic values."
In order to identify these values, one must preserve and protect the building itself and its
environment. According to the Government Notice (21 November, 1932), the two Dolmen in
the field Ta' fuq Wield Filep at Mosta District are being protected by law and that anyone
caught doing any type of damage to the structure will be punished. This indicates that the
Government is aware of the great importance these structures have.
The Dolmen found in Santa Margerita has all the values mentioned by Robles. They have a
wonderful history that backs them considering the fact that structurally they are one of the
first structure build by primitives which had a stone roof. Moreover, aesthetical they are one
of the most beautiful prehistoric structures in the world which symbolically it was used as
tomb for the dead. A value that Robles did not mention is the economic value. Considering
the fact that Malta is a small island, and it does not have the amount of resources other
countries own, an essential income to the economy is tourism. In fact, tourism contributes
about 15% of the nation's GDP (Gross Domestic Product). Such archeological sites are very
popular for tourists to visit, therefore we must also protect them not for historical, aesthetic
and structural values only, but also for economic reasons, as they are essential to the Maltese
economy. According to Cutajar, R. Z. (30 December, 2010.), tourists arrival in 2010 reached
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1.3 million exceeding even the record established in 2008 of 1.2 million. Showing these
statistics, gives us a reason to protect our cultural heritage so that every year, the tourists
visiting Malta would increase.
Although, the Government introduced the two Dolmen found at the outskirts of Mosta in the
Protection of Antiquities Regulations in 21st November, 1932 as stated above, according to
Salvatore, D. M., (2007.), in the 1980's the Government present at that time did not put down
the Home Ownership Scheme proposal to build the Santa Margerita housing estate. It is a pity
that the site where the two dolmen are located, are suppressed by the domination of the 3
story buildings instead of developing the land around the dolmens in such a way as to give
more prominence to the megalithic tombs.
Development of Santa Margerita
The motto of the Mosta people is 'Spes Alit Ruricolam' which when translated is defined as
"Hope Strengthens the Farmer". This gives a clear idea that farmers occupied this village. In
the last three decades Mosta has gone and it is still going through extensive progress,
commercial and construction wise. Mosta is cited in the heart of Malta and is surrounded by
"fertile agricultural land". Villages and towns situated in the neighborhood of Mosta are Hal
Lija, Burmarrad, Rabat and Naxxar. Its population has boosted up and in order to satisfy the
needs of the families formed, sub urban village were erected. One can find Santa Margerita,
Tal-Blata l-Gholja, Ta' Milt and Iz-Zokrija.
In this photo below, one can see how the center was developed and the outskirt was left to
cultivate their lands.

Map of Mosta in 1837

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The first ever Census to be made in the Maltese Island was in 1842. Mosta at that time was
referred to as Musta, and its population amounted to 3,386 residents consisting in 1,601
males and 1,785 females. As years passed, Mosta was attracting more citizens. In fact, it had
a higher population rate than its neighbors, Naxxar and Gharghur, whose population
amounted to 2,765 and 1,097 respectively. Mosta continued to expand and attracted more
citizens to move in. In fact, Bugeja, M. A., (2007.), in the following table shows the increase
in the population of Mosta community from 1842 till 2005.
Year

Mosta

Numerical
Growth

% Growth
of Mosta

National

Numerical
Growth

1842
1851
1861
1871
1881
1891
1901
1911
1921
1931
1948
1957
1967
1976
1985
1995
2005

3,386
3,524
3,825
3,987
4,365
4,257
4,629
5,783
4,866
5,251
7,186
7,395
8,335
8,134
12,148
16,754
18,676

/
138
304
159
378
-108
372
1,154
-917
385
1,935
209
940
-201
4,014
4,606
1,922

/
4.08
8.63
4.15
9.48
-2.47
8.74
24.93
-15.86
7.91
36.85
2.91
12.71
-2.41
49.35
37.92
11.50

114,499
121,287
134,055
141,775
149,782
177,457
207,890
211,564
212,258
241,621
305,991
319,656
314,175
322,016
345,418
378,132
404,039

/
6,788
12,768
7,720
8,007
27,675
30,433
3,764
694
29,363
64,370
13,665
-5,481
7,841
23,402
32,714
25,907

%of
National
Growth
/
5.93
10.53
5.73
5.65
18.48
17.15
1.77
0.33
13.83
26.64
4.47
-1.73
2.50
7.27
9.47
6.85

As one can notice from the following photos taken in the late 19th century, in 1935, and the
survey sheet respectively, one can observe that the area developed till 1968 in Mosta was in
its center where one could find the Rotunda Church and the square. During this period, Mosta
was still surrounded with fields.

Photo of Mosta in late 19 century

Photo of Mosta in 1935

Approximately Santa Margerita

Photo of Mosta in 1935

Approximately Santa Margerita

Photo of Mosta in 1935

Santa Margerita

Mosta Survey sheet 1968

Dolmen

Santa Margerita Survey sheet 1968

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As seen in the table above, from 1976 till 1985, the population increased by 4,014, therefore
buildings had to be constructed at the outskirts of Mosta. The primarily reason why sub urban
villages such as Margerita had to be planned was because the area near the Rotunda was
becoming too densely populated, and it could not anymore satisfy the needs of the families
formed. As one can see, the following tables produced by Bugeja, M. A., (2007.), shows the
national and local density in square per miles and in square per kilometers respectively in
Mosta.

Year

Mosta
Area in
Local
sq. mile
Population

1881
1891
1901
1911
1921
1931
1948
1957
1967
1976

1.354
1.354
1.354
1.354
1.107
1.107
1.107
1.9
3.376
3.376

Year

Mosta
Area in sq. Persons
km

1985
1995
2005

6.418
5.427
6.78

4,365
4,257
4,629
5,783
4,866
5,251
7,186
7,377
8,335
8,134

12,178
16,754
18,676

Average no. Area in

of persons
sq. miles
per sq. mile
3,224
3,144
3,419
4,271
4,396
4,743
6,491
3,883
2,469
2,409

117.36
117.36
117.36
117.36
121.82
121.81
121.84
121.85
121.85

National
National
Population

149,782
174,547
196,178
221,161
216,614
245,638
305,991
316,620
314,175

Average
no.
of
persons per
sq. mile
1,276
1,487
1,671
1,884
1,778
2,016
2,511
2,623
2,578

National
Average no. Area
in
of persons sq. km
per sq. km
1,176
3,087
2,755

315.591
315.591
315.591

345,418
378,132
404,039

Average
no.
of
persons per
sq. km
1,094
1,200
1,282

The following photos are taken from the Mepa Server Sheet where they indicates the
development Santa Margerita has gone through from 1998 till 2004.

Dolmen

Santa Margerita

Ortho photo Map 1998

Dolme
n

Santa Margerita

Orthophoto Map 2004

The only problem with this area is that, it hosted an important cultural heritage. When
considering the fact that three story buildings suppressed the importance of such 'stone-tables'
and the distance between the historic site and the housing estate is very close, one can
conclude that when planning this area, they did not take into consideration the importance of
the megalithic structures. It would have been much better, if the housing estate was planned
much far away, in such a way that when one is visiting the site, the visitor will not be able to
see the modern architecture in the background, as seen in the photograph below. Another
issue that is very alarming is that the Dolmen is very difficult to reach due to the fact that
there is no direct route which takes you there. In fact one may propose to make route that
takes you there in order to aid visitors visiting these megalithic site.

Additionally, the area where the two Dolmen is located is abandoned and the land is not
taken good care of. Moreover, roads are found round these megalithic tombs, which with
their pollution can make extensive damage. There is no protection and security up to
standards to protect such wonders from vandalism as the only mediocre protection is the
rubble wall round the structures. No guards or security cameras are found in the area. If such
heritage is not taken care of, it may suffer consequences and when the damage is so extensive
than it will be irreversible.
Our heritage is very important to us Maltese citizens because it defines our culture from any
other culture. Therefore our main objective is to try and preserve, protect, and restore such
wonders not only to safeguard our historical past but also giving the same opportunities of
learning such knowledge to future generations.

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References:
Bugeja, M. A., (2007.). Dissertation: A study in local history since 1800: Mosta.
Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, (2007.).Dolmen. Retrieved from
http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Dolmen
Cutajar, R. Z., (30 December, 2010.). Tourist arrivals expected to reach 1.3 million by end
2010. Retrieved from
http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/en/newsdetails/news/national/Tourist-arrivals-expected-toreach-1-3-million-by-end-2010
Government Notice.(21 November, 1932.).Protection of Antiquities Regulations. Retrieved
from
http://www.justiceservices.gov.mt/DownloadDocument.aspx?app=lom&itemid=11070&l=1
Maps of Mosta and Santa Margerita. Retrieved from official website of
Mepahttp://mapserver.mepa.org.mt/frame.php?site=malta_internet&lang=en&group=public
&resol=2
Regester, R., (n.d.). The constitution of the Republic. Retrieved from
http://www.centrorisorse.org/protecting-cultural-heritage-the-task-of-all.html
Robles, L. G., (2 May, 2010.). A methodological Approach Towards Conservation.
Conservation and MGMT of ARCH. Sites, 12, 146-69.
Salvatore, D. M. (2007). Dissertation: The housing situation in Mosta: A geographical
analysis.
Scerri, L. J. (1996.). Mosta: The heart of Malta.
UNESCO, (1989.). Draft Medium Term Plan 1990-1995. Retrieved from
http://cif.icomos.org/pdf_docs/Documents%20on%20line/Heritage%20definitions.pdf

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