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Malta Business Review<br />
FRAGSUS PROJECT<br />
EXPLORING THE PAST<br />
TO BUILD OUR FUTURE:<br />
Minister Bonnici addresses conference and inaugurates exhibition on the FRAGSUS project<br />
Photo: DOI- Jason Borg<br />
Minister for Justice, Culture<br />
and Local Government<br />
Owen Bonnici addressed a<br />
conference in relation to the<br />
FRAGSUS (Fragility and<br />
sustainability in restricted<br />
island environments:<br />
Adaptation, cultural change<br />
and collapse in prehistory)<br />
project. This five-year<br />
research project carried<br />
out by an international<br />
interdisciplinary team<br />
from Malta, Britain and<br />
Ireland led to new exciting<br />
discoveries about early Malta<br />
and its inhabitants.<br />
Photo: DOI- Jason Borg<br />
“We are unearthing new answers and<br />
discovering more about our history, about<br />
our country and about our heritage. Our<br />
history is an imperative source of information<br />
and it is also the foundation which we build<br />
our future upon,” said Minister Bonnici. He<br />
highlighted the importance of collaboration<br />
and described it as “a key element when it<br />
comes to provide a holistic dynamic approach<br />
as well as exposure. These collaborations,<br />
both internationally and locally aid for our<br />
heritage to be more accessible, they’re also<br />
a great way of sharing our rich history and<br />
culture. This Government’s strategy is to<br />
ensure that culture is accessible to everyone,<br />
as we believe in this vast ever- growing sector<br />
which keeps on giving, especially when it<br />
comes to employment.”<br />
A few of the new discoveries mentioned<br />
during the conference were that the first<br />
inhabitants of Malta arrived around 5900BC,<br />
about 700 years earlier than previously<br />
thought and that our islands saw more than<br />
one episode of Neolithic colonisation. The<br />
new dietary studies conducted showed<br />
declining levels of meat consumption as<br />
conditions deteriorated, but inhabitants<br />
resorted to cereals and other vegetables to<br />
sustain themselves. It came as a surprise that<br />
fish where hardly exploited.<br />
Minister Bonnici also referred to the fact this<br />
year is the European Year of Cultural Heritage.<br />
There have already been several firsts related<br />
to our treasured heritage this year, namely<br />
the inclusion of four Great Siege Maps in the<br />
UNESCO Memory of the World Register as<br />
well as looking into the process of nominating<br />
aspects of our national intangible heritage<br />
for the world-renowned UNESCO list for<br />
intangible heritage.<br />
The conference also looked at archaeological<br />
discoveries and particular sites, such as Skorba,<br />
Santa Venera and Taċ-Ċawla to name a few.<br />
Minister Bonnici will also inaugurate an<br />
exhibition pertaining to the results of<br />
this project at the National Museum of<br />
Archaeology, which will be open to the public<br />
free of charge until the 15th of June.<br />
We are unearthing new<br />
answers and discovering<br />
more about our history,<br />
about our country and<br />
about our heritage.<br />
The FRAGSUS project – an investment of<br />
€2.5million – financed by the European<br />
Research Council, brought together experts<br />
from different European universities. The<br />
research has effectively rewritten the first<br />
chapter of Maltese history. Minister for Justice,<br />
Culture and Local Government Owen Bonnici<br />
inaugurated an exhibition at the National<br />
Museum of Archaeology, which is open to the<br />
public for free. This exhibition showcases the<br />
primary findings of this research and is open<br />
until 15 June. <strong>MBR</strong><br />
The National Museum of Archaeology,<br />
Valletta (MJCL1703201801-03)<br />
Courtesy: The ministry for justice, culture and<br />
local government<br />
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