We crossed over from Malta to Sicily, moving from a small island to the largest in the Mediterranean. Now we’re in Roman territory! Actually, not quite. Yes, the Romans were here. They conquered the island during the First Punic War (a series of three wars fought between Rome and Carthage). However, before the Romans arrived, the Greeks were here, as we would see at other locales around the island. Our first stop was at Agrigento on the southern coast. There are a series of Greek temples built on a ridge, called the Valley of Temples today. (Whoever came up with […]
Monthly Archives: November 2017
Sailing from Malta
After three months we put out to sea in a ship that had wintered in the island—it was an Alexandrian ship with the figurehead of the twin gods Castor and Pollux. Acts 28:11 Paul and his companions set sail from Malta, continuing their journey to Rome. After two days on Malta, we set sail on a ferry to Sicily, the largest island in the Mediterranean. The harbor has been a harbor for thousands of years. This is likely from where Paul sailed, too. Who else has sailed in and out of this harbor over the millennia? The Romans aren’t the […]
The Maltese Romans
Last time I talked about the earliest evidence of human activity on Malta. Over time, other groups would come. The Phoenicians arrived around the 8th century BC. Phoenicia was the coastal lands north of ancient Israel roughly compromising modern-day Lebanon. They were a sea-faring people, venturing across the Mediterranean. Solomon got cedars from them to build the Temple in Jerusalem (1 Kings 5). He also sailed with them, bringing in exotic items from afar (1 Kings 10:22). Phoenicia established a city in northern Africa called Carthage. After Phoenicia was taken out by Assyria, Carthage rose up to dominate the western […]