The Cart Ruts of Malta
Across the bare limestone of Malta run pairs of deep grooves like railway tracks. Nobody knows who made them, or how.
What was reported
On the rocky plateaus of Malta and Gozo run hundreds of pairs of parallel grooves cut into the limestone, some up to 60 cm deep. At Misraħ Għar il-Kbir, so many cross and branch that the site is nicknamed 'Clapham Junction', after the busy London railway station. Some ruts even run off cliff edges and into the sea.
They have been studied for more than a century, and their age is uncertain: estimates range from the Bronze Age to Roman times.
Explanations offered
The most common explanation is that they were worn by carts or sledges carrying heavy loads, such as stone, over many years, deepening as the soft rock eroded. Why they run where they do, including into the sea, may be explained by changes in sea level and erosion since they were made.
- When
- Age unknown
- Where
- Misraħ Għar il-Kbir, Malta
- Witnesses
- Archaeologists and visitors
- Status
- Unexplained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.