Tas-Silġ, the sacred site five civilisations used in turn

Some sites tell you about one era and others tell you a whole country’s story. Tas-Silġ is the second kind. On the hill above Marsaxlokk Bay, the same sacred place was used by the Neolithic temple builders, the Phoenicians, the Greeks and Romans, the first Christians, and finally, in the Arab period, it served as a burial ground. Heritage Malta describes it as the archaeological complex with the longest history of use on the islands, and to me it’s the best history lesson in Malta that fits on a single plot.

From megalithic temple to Astarte

It all started in the Tarxien phase, between 3150 and 2500 BC, when a megalithic temple and surrounding structures were built, from the same family as the megalithic temples of Malta. Occupation carried on into the Bronze Age, in what archaeologists call the Borġ in-Nadur phase, between 1500 and 700 BC.

The interesting part comes later. Between the 8th and 3rd centuries BC, the Phoenicians and Punic settlers adapted the old temple to their own rites while keeping it sacred, and the small shrine of Astarte they founded became known across the Mediterranean. In the Punic-Hellenistic and Roman periods, from the 3rd century BC to the 5th century AD, the temple grew into a sanctuary with a colonnaded portico.

How did it end up as a basilica and a cemetery?

With the arrival of Christianity in the Byzantine period, around the 5th century, a basilica was built, and at its rear a baptismal font was set into the prehistoric temple. It’s one of those images I find hard to shake, Christian baptisms held among stones raised three thousand years earlier.

Until then the site had kept its sacred role. Only in the Arab period, between the 9th and 11th centuries, was it used for burials, after which it was abandoned and turned into farmland. The farmhouse beside it dates from the 17th century and grew out of that farming. It has been excavated by the Missione Archeologica Italiana a Malta, the University of Malta and Heritage Malta.

So you do not lose the morning at the ticket office, browse tickets and tours in Tas-Silġ on GetYourGuide.

How and when to see it

It pays to be realistic here. Heritage Malta’s page gives no regular opening hours, and the site opens on set occasions, such as the open day on 27 September 2026. Heritage Malta itself admits that, given its complexity, it’s very hard to understand without a guide. I’d wait for one of those organised visits rather than peering in on my own.

If you want to see the finds, Heritage Malta’s calendar lists a Phoenician exhibition on Tas-Silġ in Valletta’s National Museum of Archaeology from November 2026 to February 2027. It’s a good complement, or a stand-in if your dates don’t match an open day.

Combining it with Marsaxlokk

Tas-Silġ sits above Marsaxlokk, with a bus stop about five minutes away. I’d go on a Sunday morning, when the fish market is on at the harbour, and finish with lunch facing the luzzu boats. It was also part of the same defensive landscape as Fort Delimara, since there was a Fort Tas-Silġ nearby guarding the harbour too.

If you would rather go at your own pace, see the car hire deals in Valletta: the earlier you book, the more cars are left to choose from.

Before you fix your dates, compare tickets to Malta: the same journey can cost very different amounts from one day to the next.