~~Phoenician Religion on Malta by JL van Sister

A critical re-examination of material ‘evidence’ from Malta and Gozo,
Introduction

This piece critically looks at the way ancient religion is, and can be (or cannot be), reconstructed on the islands of Malta and Gozo during the Phoenician and Punic periods, by looking at the material evidence presented in the Aegyptiaca1. It provide an assessment on how hard it is to avoid the biases in studying ancient religions and how problematic it is to provide a fact-based correct full interpretation of an object. Malta and Gozo provide a good case study for this, as their cultural history can be and has been largely reconstructed and described.

One needs to always remain critical of the way history (and pre-history) has been separated into specific time periods and regions, while often several phenomena exceed both fields, but for the sake of this research the established chronology and cultural stratigraphy will be followed. Due to the geographic location of the islands, Malta and Gozo enjoyed a high amount of connectivity, providing for many interesting phenomena, combining different cultural and religious aspects. Both of these contexts (chronology and geography) will briefly be discussed in chapter one.

The Aegyptiaca studied possess an interesting position in cultural interactions in the Mediterranean, and have often been interpreted as having been status-objects or religious objects. As it is a specific group of objects, it is easily researchable as a body of objects, rather than a collection of individual objects. Looking at these objects individually might provide for new interesting insights, and viewing them outside the established frame of reference might help deconstructing his existing bias.
The selection criteria for the specific objects used for this piece will also have to be explained carefully, as the selection of material to research religion already plays a large role in the interpretation of these objects. The objects selected here are those of the Aegyptiaca most likely related to religion or ritual, based on earlier research into them.

Read full article here: Phoenician Religion on Malta – a critical re-examination of material ‘evidence’ from Malta and Gozo, by JL van Sistern