Malta Echoes of Plato's Island

M MALTA ECHOES OF PLATO’S ISLAND The Prehistoric Society of Malta 2001 Photograph by Anton Mifsud Before the invention of the telescope by Jan Lippersheim in 1608, Nicolaus Copernicus produced this map (1543) challenging the theory prevailing at the time that the world was at the centre of the universe — several ancient texts had then reached Europe from fallen Constantinople. Copernicus was supported in his hypothesis by the observations of Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler in 1609, when Galileo built his own telescope and also confirmed Copernicus through his observations of the solar system. MALTA ECHOES OF PLATO’S ISLAND Anton Mifsud Simon Mifsud Chris Agius Sultana Charles Savona Ventura The Prehistoric Society of Malta 2001 MALTA: ECHOES OF PLATO’S ISLAND Anton Mifsud, Simon Mifsud, Chris Agius Sultana, Charles Savona Ventura ISBN No. 99932-15-02-3. First published by the Prehistoric Society of Malta, July 2000. Second Edition, September 2001, revised by Anton Mifsud. © The Prehistoric Society of Malta. Except when stated otherwise, line drawings by Tabitha Mifsud, photography and full text by Anton Mifsud. Cover design by Tabitha Mifsud and Proprint Co. Ltd. Underwater photography by Chris Agius Sultana. All rights reserved. No part of this volume may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means with the prior permission of the Prehistoric Society of Malta. (E-mail - [email protected]). Printed by Proprint Co. Ltd., Shepherds Street, Mosta, MST 08, Malta. Sole distributor — The Prehistoric Society of Malta (e-mail - [email protected]). To Maria, Michaela and Zea Preface to the first edition The present theme of Plato’s Island was initiated by one of Malta’s senior archaeologists, definitely not a diehard archaeologist, and presently the Head of Archaeology and Classics at the University of Malta. During his lecture at the Medical School on St. Luke’s Day, 1998, Anthony Bonanno made mention of Giorgio Grongnet, the architect of the Mosta Dome, and one of the chief proponents for the identification of Plato’s island in the Maltese islands — Grongnet had dedicated the greater part of his life to the solution of this problem, and his manuscript is still to be found at the National Library in Valletta. He had unfortunately lost his credibility when he attempted to sustain his hypothesis through a forged inscription, a circumstance which he himself freely admitted. It was also during 1998 that I was actually conducting research in order to disprove this very hypothesis as then being resuscitated by Chris Agius Sultana from Rabat. The outcome was a reversal of my original intention in liaison with my fellow authors. Which category of archaeologist – scholar of antiquities – is best suited to deal with the main theme of this publication? Is it the professional, the quack or the amateur? The professional archaeologist is not necessarily fully qualified to dictate an exclusive interpretation of accumulated data, for archaeology embraces a multitude of disciplines, and the professional archaeologist’s exclusivity lies solely with his license to dig and to report faithfully upon what he has destroyed. (My personal preference for a truly professional archaeologist outside of the Maltese Islands is Paul Bahn. He makes archaeology intensely interesting, and is honest enough to admit a soft spot for Indiana Jones). One category of professional archaeologist who qualifies for a key role in such an investigation on Plato’s Island is the specialized underwater archaeologist who is well equipped for the job. Advances in underwater technology have been responsible in recent times for the discovery of ancient sites lost by submersion, and for operations upon the Titanic and the Kursk. This brings us to the diehard archaeologist, the graduate in archaeological studies who raises an eyebrow, or both, at the mere mention of Plato’s Island, and who immediately betrays his prejudice by refusing to consider any evidence linked with this theme. He would have to insist that the Russian submarine was a collective burial site because a large quantity of bodies was discovered inside it, in the same way that the Hal Saflieni Hypogeum is still assumed to represent a collective burial site on the same grounds. Genuine scholarship requires no added weight of authority, and the efforts of quack archaeologists are not worthy of consideration — a quack is strictly a person who claims a doctoral qualification when he has none. Prehistoric interpretation is open to all scholars with sufficient gray matter in their skulls to exclude personal bias in favour of logical processes. The theme of Plato’s Island is ideally dealt with by the genuine amateurs of archaeology, particularly those scholars who have no personal interests in gain or promotion through the hypotheses they formulate. It is this last category that we have attempted to emulate. Preface to the second edition This early second edition has been occasioned through the rapid exhaustion of the first. It has been made possible through the collaboration of a number of friends, chief among whom I would like to include Edwin Lanfranco, Geraldine Camilleri, Joan Marler and Linda Eneix. Abigail has once more read the final draft. At the turn of the millennium, Atlantis has been included in the "traditional" works of archaeology, albeit in a disparaging context, where the attempts of genuine amateurs to identify Plato's island are denigrated in a most unscholarly manner. The bi-monthly Americal journal Archaeology and the textbook by the same name have both neglected to disguise their bias when dealing with the theme. Thus both publications have attempted to pontificate from their mythical ivory towers by emarginating amateur archaeologists in general to an-"other", a "pseudo-", "on the fringe" and a dowright fraudulent category of archaeology of the Piltdown type; the self-styled true professional archaeologists are assumed to be themselves, the "searchers," with a self-awarded exclusive right to the interpretation of archaeological data. (It is as if the culprit for the Piltdown forgery has been identified, and Woodward Smith of the British Museum exonerated from any participation in the fraud). But truly remarkable are the comments relating to the opinion of the "scientist" in these matters, for the authors seem to ignore the fact that most "searchers" or so-called "professional" archaeologists lack the required quantum of basic scientific knowledge, whether this is anatomy, biology, botany, physiology, pathology, bacteriology, forensics, physics or chemistry - one lecture on radiocarbon dating is hardly satisfactory to professionalize a graduate in archaeological studies. On the other hand, the contrary is true for most amateurs. Three of the four authors of this publication are scientists who are fully accredited also in the United Kingdom. Less than a century ago one sole Maltese scientist in the same discipline, Temi Zammit, proved his archaeological worth by challenging even Arthur Evans over Tarxien, and Zammit's dating of Tarxien has remained unchanged although also challenged later by Arthur's namesake, John D. History repeats itself, and once again the amateur researcher will topple the professed searcher over. The evidence for our hypothesis on Plato's Island is being presented not to the searchers' establishment for any form of approval, but to a jury of readers for their final decision. A. M. Table of Contents Preface vi List of illustrations ix Introduction 1 The Twentieth Century 1 An assessment of the megalithic structures 1 The ancient texts 2 The Egyptian Priests 2 The library of Alexandria 2 The antiquity of sources in the texts 4 Severe losses of ancient texts 4 Corruption of texts 4 Politics and prehistory 6 Discoveries confirming the texts 6 Solon and Psonchis in Sais 8 Fact or Fiction 10 Acceptance of Plato’s story 12 Similar cataclysms in historical accounts 12 The search for Plato’s island 12 Malta as a remnant of Plato’s island 14 Criteria for qualification 16 1. A larger landmass in antiquity 16 (a) Early antiquity 16 The early scholars 16 Bathemetry in the nineteenth century 16 Fossil remains 18 Stratigraphy 18 (b) Later antiquity 18 The ancient geographers 18 Cart ruts 24 Biogeographic index 26 2. Floral, faunal and anthropological links with the Pelagian islands and North Africa during the prehistoric period 26 Podarcis 26 Anthropological links 28 Cultural links with the countries dominated by Plato’s island 28 Links with ancient Tyrrhenia 28 Links with ancient Egypt 28 Links with ancient Libia 30 3. Tectono-seismic profile of the Maltese islands 32 Tilting 34 4. Catastrophic events on Malta 36 The flood in ancient cultures 36 Torrential flooding events 36 Human victims of flooding events in the late Neolithic 38 Land submergence and subsidence 40 Submerged temples 42 Land movements on Malta during the Holocene 44 Volcanic activity on Malta 44 5. The Chronology 46 Absolute dating 46 Relative dating 46 Radiocarbon dating 46 6. Features on Malta compatible with Plato’s description 48 Geography 48 The western ocean 48 The Straits of Heracles 48 Plato’s relative geography 52 Cultural and physical features 52 Cultural features 52 Physical features – cart ruts 52 Physical features – temples 54 7. Other ancients texts confirming the geographical position of Plato’s Atlantika 56 Ogygia 56 Malta or Crete 56 Chaldean links 58 Conclusion 58 Summary 58 Endnotes 60 References 64 Plates 73 Index 84 List of illustrations Figures Figure 1. The ancient texts 3 Figure 2. The antiquity of sources for the ancient texts 5 Figure 3. Corruption of the texts 5 Figure 4. Revival of the ancient authors 7 Figure 5. Mythology transformed into history 7 Figure 6. The story on the temple walls 9 Figure 7. Features of Plato’s Island 11 Figure 8.

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