Malta’s Ancient Cart Ruts: Their age, formation, and context

Lecture by Mr Joel Grima

The origin of the Maltese cart ruts has been debated for nearly four centuries. Contemporary archaeological opinion remains divided, broadly interpreting them as either cut to guide wheeled Punic and Roman carts, or worn by the repeated passage of late prehistoric vehicles. This research employs scientific and statistical techniques to address their enigmatic age, formation, and use. In addition to the suite of radiometric dating techniques and spatial-statistical analyses, the study is underpinned by the largest dataset of Maltese cart rut sites compiled so far. This comprises data from 222 sites, including 145 high-resolution 3D models which enable accurate, consistent digitisation and morphometric analysis of cart ruts across Malta and Gozo.