Xagħra Circle

Have you ever wondered how the Neolithic inhabitants of Malta percieved and dealt with the inevitability of death? Some of the answers to that question have been yielded by the Xagħra Circle burial site, located just 400m to the southwest of the majestic Ġgantija. Unlike the Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum which was hewn in live Globigerina rock, the Xagħra Circe revealed the use of a concentration of natural caves that were modified to accomodate entire generations of burials. Owing to the friable nature of the rock in the area, the roofs of the caverns suffered a major collapse, reducing the entire site to the large hollow cavity visible today. The site was excavated between 1987 and 1994 by an Anglo-Maltese team of archaeologists. The rich repertoire of finds discovered at the Xagħra Circle is what makes it a truly exceptional site. Besides a large concentration of human remains belonging to successive generations of burials, archaeologists also discovered a vast quantity of grave goods. These