The Cart-Ruts An Enigma in Maltese (Pre)History

Although they are to be found all over the Maltese Islands, practically wherever there is exposed rock, few people know about the existence of the Cart-Ruts and fewer still have attempted to study their place in Maltese history. In fact, although interest in these features has been documented since the 17th century, no definite conclusions about them have been reached yet.

What exactly are the Cart-Ruts? In layman terms these are grooves in the rock with a depth of max. 60cm, in the form of a V, found generally in pairs. There is a whole system of them but when trying to understand their distribution and pattern vis-a-vis the modern Maltese landscape one cannot but conclude that they must have been produced before the modern re-organisation of the landscape. That is why archaeologists consider the rut-system to be ancient; however determining a date is an extremely difficult exercise. No datable finds (such as organic material which allows radio-carbon dating or pottery which can help date through style-comparisons) have been discovered associated with the cart-ruts.

Some ruts literally disappear into the sea, which suggest that at the time of use sea level was lower than at present, while other ruts stop abruptly at a cliff edge, again suggesting that they were used before sides of the cliff broke off. Some scholars think they are the production of the Bronze Age community since a few get quite close to promontories with known Bronze Age remains but none really goes right up to the line of settlement. This theory is also partly supported by the fact that there exist ruts cut by Punic shaft tomb, thus showing that the former preceded the latter. Suggestions that they were used during the Roman era have been put forward as well, since a set in Rabat seems to be following a Roman road.

Although the most complex set of cart-ruts (known as Clapham Junction because of their complexity) can be seen in the central part of the island of Malta (behind Buskett), a concentration of cart-ruts can be detected in the northern part of the Maltese Islands. In fact there are some to be found even in Xemxija, a few minutes' drive from the Seashells Resort at Suncrest. These cross the ridge, slanting down the slope towards the West – unfortunately they were partly destroyed by the creation of Prehistory Street.

A branch from these ruts forks to the East along the Northern side of the hill. Nearby, in Mizieb Road, immediately over the modern road there is another pair of cart-ruts which seem to connect to yet another set near the foot of the slope, a six-fold group this time. One of the biggest mysteries associated with the Cart-Ruts is their use. Given their distribution, scholars have always associated them with agricultural activities. Although there was a suggestion that they were part of a water catchment system, so far nothing has proved this theory. Even their association with ancient quarries has been very much debated, as only a small number are actually to be found next to such sites.

The most plausible suggestion so far is that they were created by vehicles transporting agricultural produce. This does not mean that it's a secure conclusion nor does it answer all the questions revolving around such activity. One cannot, for example, refrain from asking what sort of vehicle was used. By studying the distance between ruts of the same pair and also the depth and shape of the grooves, scholars have found difficulty in accepting wheeled vehicles and not even sledges fit in the scenario as some ruts have turns which are too sharp to manage with a sledge. The most interesting answer to the question seems to be slide-cars (or travois), which would consist of something very similar to stretchers dragged by a large animal. Though no parallels have been found in mainland Europe to date, such vehicles have been used by American Indians and in Irish bogs.

Archaeologist John Evans had tried out such vehicles in an experiment conducted by the BBC in the 1950s. Whatever the type of vehicle, and whatever the load that it was carrying, the process must have been done frequently and over a large period of time for such erosion to have taken place. Features similar to the Maltese cart-ruts do exist in other countries, associated with quarrying and attributed to different epochs. However such grooves present in Sicily, mainland Italy, Provence and Cyrenaica are not as extensive as the Maltese ones and so comparisons cannot help much in understanding the local features.

The Maltese rut-system does not seem to have been the result of deliberate planning and it could very well be that they were created and used during various periods, so one should not be surprised by evidence that later quarrymen used some of the already existing cart-ruts for the transportation of stone. Other issues rotate around the topic; unfortunately it is impossible to delve into more detail in this article. A glance at the suggested readings below can give a more comprehensive description of both the ruts themselves and of the geographical context. It could be that we shall never solve the enigma of the Maltese Cart-Ruts; however, a catalogue of all ruts, along with mapping projects and more comprehensive 3D planning would be ideal and of immense help in order to understand more these interesting features in Malta's landscape.