Heritage Malta is again organising a guided tour of the Mnajdra and Hagar Qim Temples on Monday to mark the solstice.

The unique setting of the Mnajdra Temples, in Qrendi, which lie in a small valley close to the seashore between two sections of cliff, gives them a special charm not to be found in any other of the large-scale megalithic buildings of the Maltese islands.

Two separate tours are being organised. In a bid to provide an enhanced experience to visitors, only 10 people will be allowed access to the Hagar Qim complex while a maximum 50 people will be accommodated for the Mnajdra tour.

Sunrise on the first day of each season underlines the relationship between the temples and celestial bodies. Although it is not known for certain whether these orientations were intentional, they are so systematic that this is very probable. 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.

On Monday visitors at the temples will marvel at sunrise as the sun's rays will light up the edge of a megalith found to the left of the central doorway connecting the first pair of chambers of the building to the inner chambers in the Mnajdra Temples. Meanwhile, the first rays of sunlight pass through a hole known as the oracle and enter the apse of the Hagar Qim temple.

Tickets for the Hagar Qim tour cost Lm5 and are strictly on a first-come-first-served basis. Interested parties are to secure their booking by calling head office on 2295 4307.

The Mnajdra sunrise guided tour costs Lm2 and bookings have to be made at Heritage Malta's head office by Friday. The guided tours start at about 6.15 a.m.

http://www.heritagemalta.org