This study explores the religious developments on the Maltese archipelago from the Neolithic period until the incorporation of the islands into the Byzantine Empire in 535 CE. By chronologically...Show moreThis study explores the religious developments on the Maltese archipelago from the Neolithic period until the incorporation of the islands into the Byzantine Empire in 535 CE. By chronologically analyzing evidence for religious activities on the islands, gleaned from the corpus of published works, in a diachronic perspective and using an explorative approach, the continuity of traditions, sites and possibly beliefs are systematically studied. The result then is a religious biography of the islands, discussing mainly the continuity of phenomena and the development of religious activities. The Maltese archipelago was subjected to many different cultural influences, which is reflected in the development of religious activities. A gradual evolution from the early Neolithic up till the start of the Bronze Age can be witnessed, during which foreign influences can be recognised. After the Bronze Age, which was fundamentally different in religious traditions than its predecessor, the Orientalising influence brought upon by the Phoenicians shaped the religious landscape of the archipelago, laying the fundaments for the succeeding millennium-and-a-half. The rise of several powers in the Mediterranean area (such as the Etruscans, Greeks and the Romans) influenced Malta indirectly. During the Punic and Roman phases the religious activities are affected by Hellenising influences, seen in material culture and the identification of deities. Under Roman Imperial rule the population gradually adopts more Roman religious customs. There is some evidence for some of the Eastern mystery cults of Mithras and Isis, but future research should help to elucidate this. From the fifth century CE onwards there is enough evidence to confirm the presence of a Diaspora Jewish community, as well as infer that a good amount of the population at that time followed the religion of Christianity. The religious developments show how insularity at one hand encouraged local development of traditions, while the high connectivity due to the geographical location of the islands encouraged the introduction of new traditions. As a result a clear line of development can be traced and influencing trends can clearly be distinguished. There are still some areas, such as some of the iconography encountered, which require further exploration to provide a better understanding of the religious developments on the islands.Show less
This thesis was written with the objective to re-examine the Aegyptiaca on Malta and Gozo during the Phoenician and Punic phases, in order to achieve a better understanding of the cultural exchange...Show moreThis thesis was written with the objective to re-examine the Aegyptiaca on Malta and Gozo during the Phoenician and Punic phases, in order to achieve a better understanding of the cultural exchange processes, which would have occurred during the first millennium BCE. Because of the geographic location of the islands in the middle of the Mediterranean, Malta holds a unique position, where several different cultures meet and merge. Based on previously published material (Hölbl 1989 and Sagona 2005), every object has been critically discussed and analyzed within its archaeological and cultural context. While some of the objects were created in Egypt, others were good copies of Egyptian originals, produced elsewhere. While a number of the objects might have been associated with purely aesthetic values, some of our objects allow for a deeper religious association. On Malta we see a convergence of Egyptian and Levantine influences, merged together in Phoenician art. This is not a strange phenomenon, as the Phoenicians themselves already adopted and changed many aspects of different cultures, which they again distributed across the Mediterranean. Where cultures meet they can merge together to form a new culture, but that is not always the case. People can also resist a new dominating culture by falling back on an older culture. This feat is shown in the numismatics of Malta and Gozo, as even under the new Roman domination coins were minted with Punic and Phoenician deities and motifs displayed on them.Show less
