San Pawl Milqi
Encyclopedia
San Pawl Milqi is the ruin of a Roman-period agricultural villa
, the most extensive to have ever been unearthed in Malta
.
According to tradition, the villa is where St. Publius, the governor and first bishop of Malta, welcomed St. Paul after his shipwreck in 60AD. However, there is no archaeological evidence that Publius ever lived in the villa. In fact, evidence of Christian
worship on the site only dates back to the building of the first chapel in the fourteenth century.
It is managed by Heritage Malta
and closed for conservation except for the annual open day, which is usually in February.
phases of the Maltese Bronze Age.
The first building on the site was probably built in the Phoenician-Punic period, when the site was used intermittently for agriculture
. A small number of structures remain from this period and one burial bears a neo-Punic inscription.
In the Roman period
, the site’s position on the slopes of a fertile valley and vicinity to the Roman harbour at Salina meant that it was ideally suited to the production of olive oil
. The establishment was expanded; the original central courtyard was transformed into an industrial area. The trapetum (a rotating mill used to separate pips from olive fruit), anchor points and at least two presses can still be seen, as well as a set of settling vats used to purify oil.
Although large enough to have been the property of a rich aristocrat, the villa does not contain any residential quarters of any particular richness. The four rooms which can be identified as serving residential needs were, in fact, only decorated with painted wall plasters and common cocciopesto flooring. None show the elaborate and expensive floor mosaics
like those of the Domvs Romana in Rabat
.
The site was eventually reduced in size and surrounded by a thick fortification wall, probably during the period of Arab rule in Malta. Its fortified walls, constant water supply and good position meant that it was ideally located to control the nearby port and valleys.
A church was built on part of the site in the fourteenth century, but after more than a century it fell into disuse and in 1616 was replaced by a church dedicated to the welcoming of St. Paul. This church, which still stands today, is the oldest record connecting the site to the traditional event.
Roman villa
A Roman villa is a villa that was built or lived in during the Roman republic and the Roman Empire. A villa was originally a Roman country house built for the upper class...
, the most extensive to have ever been unearthed in Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
.
According to tradition, the villa is where St. Publius, the governor and first bishop of Malta, welcomed St. Paul after his shipwreck in 60AD. However, there is no archaeological evidence that Publius ever lived in the villa. In fact, evidence of Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
worship on the site only dates back to the building of the first chapel in the fourteenth century.
It is managed by Heritage Malta
Heritage Malta
Heritage Malta is the Maltese national agency for museums, conservation practice and cultural heritage. Created by the Cultural Heritage Act, enacted in 2002, the national agency replaced the former Museums Department....
and closed for conservation except for the annual open day, which is usually in February.
History
The site has been in use since prehistoric times; a couple of tombs date back to the Zebbug and possibly the Borg in-NadurBorġ in-Nadur
Borġ in-Nadur is a Tarxien megalithic temple in open fields, overlooking St George’s Bay, near Birzebbuga, Malta. The site is now closed to the public and its preservation is the responsibility of Heritage Malta...
phases of the Maltese Bronze Age.
The first building on the site was probably built in the Phoenician-Punic period, when the site was used intermittently for agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
. A small number of structures remain from this period and one burial bears a neo-Punic inscription.
In the Roman period
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
, the site’s position on the slopes of a fertile valley and vicinity to the Roman harbour at Salina meant that it was ideally suited to the production of olive oil
Olive oil
Olive oil is an oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps...
. The establishment was expanded; the original central courtyard was transformed into an industrial area. The trapetum (a rotating mill used to separate pips from olive fruit), anchor points and at least two presses can still be seen, as well as a set of settling vats used to purify oil.
Although large enough to have been the property of a rich aristocrat, the villa does not contain any residential quarters of any particular richness. The four rooms which can be identified as serving residential needs were, in fact, only decorated with painted wall plasters and common cocciopesto flooring. None show the elaborate and expensive floor mosaics
Mosaic
Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...
like those of the Domvs Romana in Rabat
Rabat, Malta
Rabat is a village just outside Mdina, Malta. The name of the village is derived from the Arabic word for 'suburb': الرباط, as it was the suburb of the old capital Mdina. Half of the present-day village core also formed part of the Roman city of Melita, before the latter was resized during the...
.
The site was eventually reduced in size and surrounded by a thick fortification wall, probably during the period of Arab rule in Malta. Its fortified walls, constant water supply and good position meant that it was ideally located to control the nearby port and valleys.
A church was built on part of the site in the fourteenth century, but after more than a century it fell into disuse and in 1616 was replaced by a church dedicated to the welcoming of St. Paul. This church, which still stands today, is the oldest record connecting the site to the traditional event.