Becker's 1913 publication Malta Sotterranea,
Studien zur altchristlichen und jiidischen
Sepulkralkunst- studies of Malta's early Christian
and Jewish sepulchral art- is a work often quoted
and sometimes even copied by authors writing on
Malta's catacombs and Late Antiquity. Its value was
recognised by many scholars, but to date very few
have managed to fully grasp and understand it.
Certainly, one does not need to understand much
German to realise that his study was exceptionally
thorough and methodical. But one needs to master
German and German grammar perfectly in order to
follow his line of reasoning - which is why many
remarkable conclusions and discoveries in Malta
Sotterranea were at best ignored, or at worst
wrongly quoted or totally misunderstood. Ironically,
it is thanks to the latter that his book never slipped
into oblivion.peer-reviewe
