New walkway for Ġgantija temples

A new walkway will be constructed at the two megalithic temples of Ġgantija after a planning permit was granted yesterday, allowing the one closed to the public to eventually be open as well.

Only the larger temple of this Unesco World Heritage Site is accessible to visitors to minimise damage to the floors of the ancient structures.

The lightweight walkway, to be built by Heritage Malta, will be off the floor and completely reversible as the supports will be placed on a 5mm foam cushion. The walkway itself will be made of timber decking and some 15 fibreglass information panels will be positioned along it.

Vertical partitions made of galvanised mesh were also proposed to prevent people from touching the megaliths. However, their approval was deferred after the planning authority board, which met yesterday, asked for samples of the material.

The walkway is designed to make the temples more accessible while protecting their structure at the same time. It will complement other walkways that already link the temple area to the visitors’ centre and can be used by people in wheelchairs.

During the meeting, Judge Giovanni Bonello, a board member of the Malta Environment and Planning Authority, questioned whether the temples should be preserved more conservatively by, for example, prohibiting visitors from entering the temples and allowing them to view them only from the outside.

The board turned down the suggestion as it argued that, due to the nature of the temples, they could not be appreciated from the exterior.

The complex consists of two megalithic temples dating back to 3,600 B.C and surrounded by a common boundary wall. The larger temple was the first to be built.

The site was first excavated by Colonel John Otto Bayer in 1827. The gigantic ruins were for a long time associated with a mysterious race of giants, eventually giving rise to the name of the site derived from “ġgant” meaning giant.

The location is scheduled as a Class A site of archaeological importance, designated as an archaeological park in the Gozo and Comino Local Plan, and must have a minimum buffer zone of 100 metres.