Editing History of Malta (section)

==Bronze Age (2350 BC–700 BC)==
After the Temple period came the [[Bronze Age]]. From this period there are remains of a number of settlements and villages, as well as [[dolmen]]s — altar-like structures made out of very large slabs of stone. They are claimed to belong to a population certainly different from that which built the previous megalithic temples.

It is presumed the population arrived from Sicily because of the similarity to the constructions found in the largest island of the Mediterranean sea.<ref name=Piccolo-dolmens>{{cite book |author1=Piccolo, Salvatore |author2=Darvill, Timothy |year=2013 |title=Ancient Stones, The Prehistoric Dolmens of Sicily |publisher=Brazen Head Publishing |location=Abingdon, GB |isbn=9780956510624}}</ref>

One surviving [[menhir]], which was used to build temples, still stands at [[Kirkop]]; it is one of the few still in good condition.

Among the most interesting and mysterious remnants of this era are the so-called cart ruts as they can be seen at a place on Malta called [[Misraħ Għar il-Kbir]] (informally known as Clapham Junction). These are pairs of parallel channels cut into the surface of the rock, and extending for considerable distances, often in an exactly straight line. Their exact use is unknown. One suggestion is that beasts of burden used to pull carts along, and these channels would guide the carts and prevent the animals from straying. The society that built these structures eventually died out or at any rate disappeared.{{citation needed|date=May 2018}}

Between 1400 BC and 1200 BC there was a Mycaenaean influence on the Malta, which is evidenced by presence of Mycaenaean artefacts.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kessler |first=P. L. |title=Kingdoms of Italy - Sicani |url=https://www.historyfiles.co.uk/KingListsEurope/ItalySicani.htm |access-date=2022-06-25 |website=www.historyfiles.co.uk |language=en}}</ref>