Tomorrow, the public may visit for free one of Malta’s oldest prehistoric sites – Għar Dalam Cave – and its museum in Birżebbuġa during an open day organised by Heritage Malta.

Created during the Ice Age by rushing water penetrating into narrow crevices and dissolving long stretches of rock, Għar Dalam is 144 metres deep, although only around 60m is open to the public.

When the cave was excavated, five distinct layers of deposits were found.

The lowest clay layer did not contain the remains of any animal species; the subsequent ‘Hippopotamus Layer’ contained many animal bones deposited there by water during the Pleistocene era, around 500,000 years ago.

The third layer consists of pebbles with sparse animal bones; this was topped by the ‘Deer Layer’, dating from 25,000 to 18,000 years ago, a sterile volcanic ash layer, and finally a ‘Cultural Layer’, which holds the earliest evidence of human presence in Malta, some 7,400 years ago.

The bones of a dwarf elephant found in the cave are housed in the nearby museum.

The remains found in the cave are housed in the nearby museum, including the bones of small-sized elephants and hippopotami.

The cave, which hosts an endemic species of wood louse (Armadillidum ghardalamensis), is a Natura 2000 site.

Visitors may visit the cave and museum from 9am to 5pm (last admission 4.30pm). There will be a guided tour in Maltese at 10.30am, and another in English at 2.30pm. No booking is required. For further information, visit www.heritagemalta.org.