Malta · Series: Prehistoric Sites, Mnajdra

Issue date21 Jun 2018

Total mintage335,000

EU maximum320,000

Editions3

Edge lettering2 ✠✠ × 6, alternately upright/inverted

InscriptionMNAJDRA / TEMPLES / 3600-2500 BC / MALTA / 2018

DesignerNoel Galea Bason

mintMonnaie de Paris, Pessac

Issue occasion

The commemorative coin honours the prehistoric temples of Mnajdra, which are part of the UNESCO World Heritage. The design depicts the complex consisting of three temples, the oldest parts of which date from around 3600–3200 BC. Mnajdra is known for its astronomical alignment with the equinox and the summer solstice; the design is complemented by the inscriptions “MNAJDRA”, “TEMPLES” and “3600-2500 BC”.

The design

The inner part of the coin depicts the prehistoric Maltese temples of Mnajdra, which form part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. The prehistoric sites of Mnajdra consist of three temples grouped around an oval forecourt. They are located on Malta’s southern coast, around 500 m from Hagar Qim. Mnajdra is known for its astronomical alignment; the South Temple was apparently built to mark the equinoxes and the summer solstice. The oldest parts of the complex date from around 3600-3200 BC. At the upper right edge of the coin design, the inscriptions “MNAJDRA”, “TEMPLES” and the years “3600-2500 BC” are arranged one below the other. At the lower left edge of the inner part of the coin, the name of the issuing country “MALTA” and, below it, the year of issue “2018” can be seen.
The outer ring of the coin depicts the twelve stars of the European flag.

Background on the topic

Mnajdra belongs to the so-called Maltese temple culture, which developed on the islands of Malta and Gozo during the Neolithic period. Its structures were built by communities that lived from agriculture and animal husbandry and had no metal tools. Nevertheless, they transported and worked large limestone blocks. No written records of this population have survived; its social organisation and religious beliefs can therefore only be inferred from architectural forms, burials and archaeological finds.

Characteristic of the Maltese temples are monumental entrances made of vertical stone blocks with horizontal blocks above them, as well as interiors with semicircular niches. Stone slabs, altars, animal bones and figurative representations point to communal ceremonies and sacrificial practices. However, which deities were worshipped and how the individual rooms were used has not been conclusively established. The spaces that are open today were probably at least partly roofed. Mnajdra was built from various local types of limestone; harder rock was used for particularly exposed exterior areas.

The temple structures of Malta form part of an independent island tradition. Although contacts existed with other communities in the Mediterranean region, the architecture and furnishings display characteristic local forms. Towards the end of the temple period, this building tradition came to an end. The causes are unknown; changes in the environment, the economic system or the population have been suggested.

The UNESCO inscription covers several megalithic temple sites on Malta and Gozo, including Ġgantija, Ħaġar Qim, Tarxien, Ta’ Ħaġrat and Skorba. Together, they document various stages in the development of the archipelago’s prehistoric architecture.

The coin was part of a Maltese series on prehistoric sites. It began in 2016 with Ġgantija and continued in 2017 with Ħaġar Qim. The selection of Mnajdra thus placed the site within a sequence of archaeological motifs through which Malta depicted its pre-antique cultural heritage on circulation coins.