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In the later phase of the
Temple Period, a different style of doorway emerged. A
characteristic of these later entrances is that they are
composed of two megaliths forming doorjambs, flanking a
narrower doorway. The doorway itself often consists of a
porthole slab or a couple of
slabs forming a similar arrangement, and was built
at the end of a corridor consisting of two long megaliths.
The temples of Hagar Qim North, Hagar Qim Central (area
11) and Mnajdra Central together with the Holy Of Holies
at the Hypogeum all have this type of doorway. With the
exception of the latter, the d-unit was found to fit in
this type of doorway. Even the ratio of 1:2 of the e-unit
was noted. The length of the entrance leading to the
doorway was found to be
two times its width.
It
seems that this style of doorway began to affect the style
of the façade as well. With the exception of Hagar Qim
North, the façades of the other temples, namely Hagar Qim
Central (area 11) and Mnajdra Central were constructed
with a niche on either side of the main doorway. The same
arrangement can also be seen on the carving of a temple façade
found at Mnajdra Central. But the most clear example can
be seen at the Hypogeum. The wonderful façade hewn out of
the living rock has not suffered any weathering nor does
it have any missing stones.
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