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I attended the archaeology summer school and excavation held by the Foundation for International Studies at the University of Malta, in Malta during June & July 97.
The course consisted of two weeks of lectures on Mediterranean and Maltese ancient history and archaeology, followed by two weeks of practical archaeology at the Tas-Silg site. The lectures covered periods from prehistoric to Byzantine. Most of the lectures were held at the archaeology centre on the university campus, but some were held during conducted visits to the island's many ancient sites.
The excavation site, Tas-Silg, is a multi-period site, ranging from structures from the prehistoric Maltese Temple Period through a Punic sanctuary and up to a Byzantine church, although the vast majority of finds were Punic. The summer school excavated three pits, extending and deepening areas worked on the previous year.
 A Punic dish |
 A perfume bottle  A Hellenistic oil lamp |
The area I was working in contained what was concluded to be a rubbish pit and provided a considerable amount of archaeological material. There were many sherds of Punic amphorae, oil lamps, plates and dishes -- some inscribed with letters signifying they were dedicated to the goddess Astarte. There was also considerable biological material, including bird bones (the dove is associated with Astarte), and various sea shells, including the type the Phoenicians used to manufacture their trade-mark purple dye.
The only complete pieces of pottery were excavated in our area, one by myself. These were small Punic dishes probably used for votive offerings.
Afternoons were spent at the university campus, washing the finds and performing flotation and sieving for the finer environmental materials.
This course earned me my first 3 credits (U.S. system) towards an archaeology degree!
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