History of Ghar il-Kbir

Għar il-Kbir is made up of eight partly natural, partly rock-cut caves which surround a natural karst hollow.  Caves are spread over two different levels.  The lowermost level houses five caves, all of which can be accessed from within the large karst cavity that appears to have functioned as a misraħ, or communal open space, that was the focal point of social interaction for the troglodytes.  The remaining three caves are present at an upper level.  Some of the caves in the complex are partitioned by means of dry-stone walls into smaller enclosed spaces and the entrance to several caves is partly screened by a dry-stone wall.

The date for the first human settlement in the caves is unknown, but probably has a long history.  The utilisation of a series of caves for human and animal habitation in the Middle Ages was probably preceded by a long succession of occupational phases.  Troglodytes were certainly well established in 1544, when a “Simone Camilleri de gar il chibir” was mentioned in a notarial act of Notary Brandon de Caxaro.  G. F. Abela includes Għar il-Kbir in his list of inhabited areas in Malta and describes the cave as being a “Grotta vasta e grande”.  Abela puts the number of troglodytes inhabiting the settlement at one-hundred-and-seventeen, divided into twenty-seven