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NEW DISCOVERIES ON KALE AKTE

and rock-cut cave are discussed including processions, assembly and ritual communal meals within the broader landscape. An exploration of the use of the natural slope between the two architectural features is a point of interest and illustrates how A. has employed an innovative approach to the site overall (pp. 18–19). The new interpretation of a pyramidally shaped stone found during the original excavations as a betyl is convincing, and the comparative material presented helps to confirm the argument and to emphasise the possible aniconic nature of the deity venerated here (pp. 43–9 with reconstruction). There is also an argument made for a Christian phase of use in the rock-cut caves although the nature of the carved figures upon which this interpretation is based remains somewhat uncertain. Chapter 3 includes the detail and analysis of a dense amount of material, along with new interpretations, and this leaves the reader with the impression that further elaboration would have been helpful. The material could have been divided into two separate chapters, one dealing with the landscape and one with the re-interpretation around the excavations. The fourth chapter consists of an update on the state of the site today and some concluding observations. This short overview is another area where there seems more to do. The conclusions are very brief, and although they engage with some of the complex ideas presented in previous chapters, the aniconic aspect of the sanctuary especially, the reader is left wanting more to be made of this very useful study. As it stands, the reassessment of the evidence from Ras il-Wardija makes for an important addition to the overall understanding and interpretation of the site. The use of a range of approaches to the material helps to illuminate much about the neglected site and the volume pulls together the various phases of Malta’s history and many aspects of current theories about Mediterranean connectivity and continuities. If anything, A.’s publication presents more questions than it answers and serves to create further interest in the exploration of these points of contact across the Mediterranean. The reassessment of the site only confirms Malta’s importance as a meeting place between cultures and communities through religious worship, agriculture and navigation.