An ancient quarry has been uncovered in Malta after trenching works which revealed it might date back to the classical period.
The ancient quarry was revealed near Żejtun and Marsaxlokk and close to the area known as Tas-Silg, which has held many ancient archaeological sites.
The classical period is commonly accepted to be 1730 to 1820 which could make the newly discovered quarry nearly two or three centuries old.
While the classical period is often linked with ancient Greece and Rome, Malta’s Superintendence of Cultural Heritage and Heritage Malta has discovered ancient structures as recently as 2021.
“No associated material has been discovered and, thus, an accurate date cannot be attributed to this feature,” the SCH said to the Times of Malta.
“However, based on the ashlars still in situ and the overall typology of the quarry, a classical period date can be safely attributed to this exciting discovery.”
The SCH and WSC have conducted works to find ancient parts of Malta and uncover more of its history.
An archaeological monitor found the area contained rock surfaces featuring cuts and visible tool marks.
A further search revealed the structure was a large quarry with large ashlars being visibly hewn out of the rock.
It comes after recent discoveries in Australia which have revealed more information about dinosaurs and the prehistoric era.