In his classic book, Before Civilisation: The Radiocarbon Revolution and Prehistoric Europe (1973), Colin Renfrew paid particular attention to the megalithic complexes of Malta and Gozo. The structures were too unique and too old to weave seamlessly into a broader Mediterranean prehistory.
Like Vere Gordon Childe before him, Renfrew chose to dedicate a standalone chapter on the Maltese islands and their extraordinary freestanding megalithic structures. The structures are unique. In their design, they capture a rare streak of human creativity and genius, which propelled them to UNESCO World Heritage status.
In Renfrew’s words, the Maltese megaliths are also the “oldest freestanding stone temples”, buildings that “stand out as the single great achievement of the society which created them – a society without cities or written records or any attributes of a civilisation other than the monuments themselves”. But they did things differently then.
Prof. Lord Colin Renfrew passed away in his sleep at the age of 87, during the night between November 23 and 24. For the hundreds of his former students around the world who were mentored by him, his passing marks the end of an era. His work and academic output is unparalleled. His guidance will be missed.
Andrew Colin Renfrew was born in Stockton-On-Tees in County Durham, in the north of England. He studied archaeology and anthropology at the University of Cambridge. Following military service, Colin lectured at the universities of Sheffield and Southampton, before returning to Cambridge to take up a series of important positions.
Renfrew is celebrated as the 10th Disney Professor of Archaeology and head of the Department of Archaeology, director of the McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research at the University of Cambridge, one of the McDonald Institute’s founding directors, and Master of Jesus College. In 1991, he became Baron Renfrew of Kaimsthorn, and was an active working peer in the House of Lords.
Renfrew’s interest in Malta’s megalithic structures was symptomatic not only of his interests, but also of new directions that he advanced in different fields of archaeology. His use of recalibrated carbon dates for Malta was part of the revolutionary changes that he contributed to world archaeology.
During the 1960s and 1970s, Renfrew and the American archaeologist Lewis Binford were major advocates of ‘new archaeology’ or ‘processual archaeology’. As with carbon dating, Renfrew understood that sciences would change the way in which archaeology could be understood.
The refined chronologies enabled by carbon dating changed our perception of archaeological time. Characterisation studies gave valuable information on the circulation of materials such as flints and obsidian in various Mediterranean regions.
Equally important were Colin’s use of new analytical approaches which were based on laboratory work, more comprehensive fieldwork, landscape studies and multidisciplinary approaches to reading the past. Prehistoric societies could be understood in a new light.
‘New archaeology’ led to the loss of innocence of a discipline in ways that would eventually lead to the refined archaeology that we know today. In time, archaeology became more forensic and often highly specialised.
Important questions such as those related to the spread of agriculture during the post-glacial period, social organisation, territoriality, the spread of peoples, migratory trends and transhumance, trade and commerce and the spread of Indo-European languages were some of the subjects Renfrew wrote about in language that was accessible, simple and convincing.
His ground-breaking papers of the 1960s, and later, his renowned The Emergence of Civilisation: The Cyclades and the Aegean in the Third Millennium BC, Before Civilisation, Archaeology and Language: The Puzzle of Indo-European Origins and The Ancient Mind: Elements of cognitive archaeology remain classic works.
Renfrew’s lectures at Cambridge were inspirational, not only because of his vast knowledge, but also because his language made such a complex discipline seem so simple to contextualise. His classes were always full, almost overcrowded. His thought-provoking discussions shaped many ideas, debates, dissertations, books and papers by so many who owe so much to this singular personality.
Renfrew’s last visit to Malta was in 2018. The five-year research project, ‘Fragility and sustainability in restricted island environments: Adaptation, cultural change and collapse in prehistory’, or FRAGSUS, had come to an end. Renfrew gave a concluding address.
As usual, his thoughts were provocative but humble, suggesting so many avenues left to explore on our islands. FRAGSUS answered so many questions, but left others open to future research.
However, his after-conference dinner conversations showed how aware and proud he was of the many scholars and interested listeners who come together to discuss Malta’s prehistoric legacy. Its uniqueness inspired Renfrew so many years ago and still did so in his advanced years. It is up to us to be equally inspired by such a cultural legacy.
Anthony Pace is a former director of the Museums Department and was Malta’s first Superintendent of Cultural Heritage.