Legends from
The ancient people of the Maltese
islands had many stories and
legends surrounding their history
and ancestors. Most of these myths
find their foundations in truth and
historical facts, although they were
then embellished every time they
were handed down from generation
to generation. Some of these legends
are associated with well-known
characters in Maltese history, while
others are closely knit with popular
events of antiquity. There are some
characters which pop up in quite a
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few folktales, and w hose adventures
differ from one town to the other.
St Paul
St. Paul, who is said to have
landed in Malta in the year 60A.D.,
features in many a legend. One of
the many stories surrounding this
holy character states that while
St Paul and the other members of
the crew of the ship were warming
themselves by the fire built for
them by the Maltese natives, a viper
grabbed onto and bit Paul’s hand.
The Maltese natives immediately
marked Paul as an evil man, who
albeit being just saved from the
perils of the sea, had to meet his end
with a viper’s bite. However, Paul
just shook off the (usually) deadly
viper and threw it into the flames,
carrying on with no apparent injury.
The natives, having seen this,
were awe-struck, and proclaimed
that Paul was a holy man. Legend
states that from that day on, all the
snakes found in Malta became non-