Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/860911
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 13 AUGUST 2017 7 News JAMES DEBONO THE Planning Authority has approved a four-storey block consisting of a showroom, five maisonettes, seven apartments, four penthouses and 18 basement garages over three floors in an archaeologically sensitive area known as Tal-Qares in Mosta, close to MCAST and the Lidl supermarket. The area was added to development bound- aries in the 2006 rationalisation but is still designated as an 'Area of Archaeological Im- portance' in view of the numerous discover- ies made there, including large ashlar blocks and vine trenches, which are protected as Class B remains. But this designation does not preclude de- velopment in their vicinity. However, the case officer's report reveals that the area was proposed to be re-sched- uled as being of Class A importance – a des- ignation which would have precluded major development in the area but which was never approved. Recently the Planning Authority board vot- ed unanimously to revoke a permit in Ghar Gherduf in Kercem, in the vicinity of paleo- christian catacombs, after it emerged that the archaeological classification of the site had been wrongly stated when the application was being processed. The area had been clas- sified as being Class B instead of Class A. Although a bank guarantee of €2,888.58 was imposed to ensure that the street is properly restored in accordance with the Environmental Management Construction Site Regulations, no bank guarantee has been imposed to ensure that no damage is done to the archaeological remains in Mosta. The development was approved because the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage has not objected to the proposed develop- ment, since the site has already been investi- gated way back in 2013 in connection with a planning control application determining the planning parameters for the site. While noting that the development in- volves "vast underground excavations" and "all the necessary precautions need to be taken so as not to create any negative im- pact on the nearby archaeological remains", the Superintendence had no objection to the development except to impose monitoring conditions. Moreover a rubble wall towards the south- ern extents of the site, which incorporates large ashlar blocks, will be retained and safe- guarded. The Planning Directorate described the proposed design as "an interesting landmark building", which respects the surrounding context, which includes residences, a super- market and the 1950s civil defence depot. Experts had warned that the area may yield further findings, possibly a hypogeum in de- pressions under the rocks found in the vicin- ity of the site. The "sizable boulders" in the rubble wall at the periphery of the site are a rare testi- mony to reports of megalithic remains in and around the Mosta fort, the Archaeological Society of Malta confirmed in submissions sent to the Planning Authority. The society called for the "preservation of this feature and any archaeological feature present within the site and the surrounding area". Anthropologist Michael Deguara had also presented a detailed report on the area's ar- chaeological value in which he called for "fur- ther studies" before any decision on develop- ment in the area is taken. Such studies should include laser monitoring or a geophysical survey of the area to complement the work already carried out by the Superintendence in 2014. This should ensure that if there are "any important underground remains on the site, these are at least documented before any fur- ther development takes place". Mosta megaliths The field in which the development is be- ing proposed forms part of an area known as Tal-Qares and Misrah Ghonoq, which receives mention by E.B. Vella in his "Storja tal-Mosta". Vella refers to megaliths dating to the Neolithic period in the area of Misrah Ghonoq. Vella also makes reference to earlier descriptions of the area by Grognet, as well as folkloric references, which suggest the pres- ence of more complex megalithic structures in the area. The site is also referenced in Dr Anton Bugeja's paper "Archaeological sites around tal-Bistra". In this paper, Bugeja refers to "the megaliths found or documented at the north- ern part of Mosta between Tal-Qares and Misrah Ghonoq". One of the most intrigu- ing features in the area is an opening in the rock which prompted the concern of Prof. Kathryn Rountree, anthropology professor at Massey University in New Zealand, who specialises in neo-paganism. "I do not know the extent of the archaeolog- ical investigation of this site to date, but from observation alone there is evidence of mega- lithic stones, some of which are included in a curved wall (similar to structures on well- known temple sites), numerous potsherds scattered over the ground, and a mysterious opening in the rock in-filled with topsoil. It seems not impossible that this is an opening to a cavity, perhaps a chamber, in the rock". The plot of the approved development forms part of a larger site on which the PA had already approved a planning control ap- plication approved in May 2013. This means that although conserved the rubble wall which contains the ashlar blocks will practically be engulfed by surrounding development. Showroom approved on Mosta archaeological site Development approved because Superintendence of Cultural Heritage did not object to proposal The proposed showroom (top) - the area was added to development boundaries in the 2006 rationalisation but is still designated as an 'Area of Archaeological Importance' in view of the numerous discoveries made there, including large ashlar blocks and vine trenches, which are protected as Class B remains.