Malta 14 Mdina the old capital1

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Malta
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Mdina, the old capital
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Presenter Notes
The walls of the city have witnessed sieges from
the Arabs against the Byzantines, the Normans
against the Arabs, the piratical attacks, the
sieges of 1429 and 1551, and the attacks by the
Maltese against the French in 1798. The streets
and palaces have welcomed various visitors the
countryside people visiting the city for their
administrative needs the clergy to assist at the
cathedral monarchy who were also welcomed within
the walls of the palaces the Knights who
controlled Malta for 268 years the Grand Masters
with all their pageantry and tourists who visit
Mdina and are in awe of the unique atmosphere
that is Mdina. The city offers an architectural
feast, as there are still standing humble
buildings tucked into the small and narrow
streets, the medieval buildings, some of which
still retaining the highly interesting bi-floral
windows and the decorative elements on the
facades, and the churches with their baroque
architecture. Mdina, the noble city, still
attracts visitors to its myriad of attractions

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Although only 250 square meters in size, the
city's history is phenomenally rich. With origins
dating back more than 4,000 years, Mdina has been
a place marked by its nobilityand its
ever-changing rulers, from the Phoenicians to the
Greeks to the Romans to the British. Marcus
Tullius Cicero, the Roman statesman Diodorus
Siculus, the Greek historian and others have
praised the city for its opulent lifestyle and
magnificent buildings. According to tradition it
was here that in 60 A.D. that the Apostle St.
Paul is said to have lived after being
shipwrecked on the Islands.
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Mdina Aerial view
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Mdina has had different names and titles
depending on its rulers and its role but its
medieval name describe it best - Citta'
Notabile' the noble city. It was home then, as
now, to Malta's noble families some are
descendants of the Norman, Sicilian and Spanish
overlords who made Mdina their home from the 12th
century onwards. Impressive palaces line its
narrow, shady streets.
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Mdina main Gate, designed by the French architect
Charles François de Mondion in 1724
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Mdina Gate, the city's main entrance
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The Main Gate is approached by a stone bridge
over the moat. The bridge is flanked by two
pedestals supporting a triumphal collection of
flags, trumpets and spears together with
Vilhena's emblem, the lion and a winged sword.
The lions, supporting shields are repeated at
the Mdina end of the bridge
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Mdina Gate, the city's main entrance
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Inner side of the Main Gate with a relief
portraying the patron saints of Malta St. Paul
at the centre and at his sides St. Publius, his
first Maltese follower, and St. Agatha
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Inner side of the Main Gate St. Paul and at his
side St. Agatha holding one of her breasts and
palm frond to symbolize her martyrdom
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Mdina Cannon inscription - detail
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Mdina Gate, the city's main entrance
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The Mdina Dungeons are located beneath the
Magisterial Vilhena Palace just inside the main
entrance gate to Mdina. Set in the old cells
below the Courts of Justice are more than 20
waxwork set pieces of British tor-ture methods
used in the early 1800s.   Here in these series
of secret underground passageways, chambers and
cells a number of events, have been recreated to
portray events from the dark side of Maltese
history.
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Main door to Palazzo Vilhena, French Baroque
Architecture
Palazzo Vilhenadates to 1730 and was designed as
a Grand Master's summer residence

Presenter Notes
In 1908 Palazzo Vilhena, transformed into a
hospital, was formally inaugurated by King Edward
VII and named Connaught Hospital after the King's
brother, the Duke of Connaught. the hospital
closed in 1956

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Museum of Natural History in Malta, Palazzo
Vilhena dates to 1730 and was designed as a Grand
Master's summer residence.
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Palazzo Vilhena

Presenter Notes
In 1908 Palazzo Vilhena, transformed into a
hospital, was formally inaugurated by King Edward
VII and named Connaught Hospital after the King's
brother, the Duke of Connaught. the hospital
closed in 1956

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St.Agatha chapel, Villegagnon Street (1417) The
chapel was remodeled in 1694 by Lorenzo Gafa.
Mdina Typical narrow medieval street
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Testaferrata Palace
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Malta is famed for its elaborate door knockers.
This one appears at the door of the house of
Testaferrata
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Testaferrata Palace
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Inguanez House in front of Testaferrata Palace
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Occupying an entire block, Casa Inguanez has been
the Inguanez home since the 14th C. Citto Gatto
was named a baron in 1350 for quelling an
uprising of the Gozitans against their Aragonese
masters, and his direct descendants, the
Inquanex, are the oldest of Malta's noble
families. In 1432 King Alfonso V of Aragon
stayed here, as did Alfonso XIII of Spain in 1927
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Banca Giuratale at the Triq Villegaignon
street This "Municipal Palace" was built in 1730
as a records office and is still used for this
purpose. It is an exquisite example of Baroque
handiwork.
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Two stories of crisp detail, florid carving and
elaborate windows are set beneath two equally
elaborate corners of what look like limestone
flowerpots of dotty ornaments.
Banca Giuratale
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Banca Giuratale
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Banca Giuratale
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Banca Giuratale
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Banca Giuratale
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Mdina Front of the Corte Capitanale building at
the Misrah Il-Kunsill square
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Front of the Xara Palace hotel at the Misrah
Il-Kunsill square
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East building of the Xara Palace hotel at the
Misrah Il-Kunsill square
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Typical Maltese doors in Mdina
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Palazzo Santa Sofia is considered the oldest
building in Malta. The date on the plaque of this
manor says the structure dates from 1233 but this
may be unreliable. The upper floor was added in
1938
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Palazzo Santa Sofia
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The karozzin is a Maltese traditional mode of
transport consisting of a carriage pulled by a
horse or pair of horses. It was once popular for
general transit and is still used in ceremonies
such as funerals, and as a tourist attraction. It
is mostly found at Mdina and Valletta, and dates
to the mid-nineteenth century.
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The Karozzin, the traditional Maltese horse drawn
carriage
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St.Peter 'ad vincula' (St.Peter in Chains) was
rebuilt in 1580. It was restored in 1956
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Palazzo Falson, popularly known as the Norman
House'
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Entrance to the Palazzo Falzon (Norman House) at
the Triq Villegaignon street
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The Norman House, formerly known as Palazzo
Falzon was built at the end of the 15th century
in the Siculo-Norman style by the Aragonese
Vice-Admiral Falzon. Although the Norman House is
of a much later period than the Palazzo Santa
Sofia (1233) nearby, the string course is
identical and the decorated double windows are
magnificent. Their only equivalents are said to
be found only in Sicily and Southern Italy.
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During the Second World War a stray bomb damaged
the courtyard of the Norman House, but this was
subsequently restored.
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This is the palace where Grand Master L'Isle-Adam
was received and stayed two days after his
ceremonial reception and state entry into Mdina
in 1530.
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Palazzo Falson is a typical two-storey medieval
palace fashioned on Sicilian examples of its
period, and is one of the imposing Palazzi built
by the Sicilian, Spanish and local nobility in
Mdina.
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In 2001, Palazzo Falson was transformed into a
Historic House Museum
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Palazzo Falson Pharmacy jars Paris, 18th century
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The Norman House contains paintings of well-known
masters, glass and silver, plate, pharmacy jars,
furniture and a collection of Maltese silver and
gold objects, as well as a Library of extensive
"Melitensia".
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Palazzo Falson Historic House Museum opened to
the public on the 4th May, 2007
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Text Internet Pictures Sanda Foisoreanu
Gabriela Cristescu
Internet All copyrights belong to
their respective owners Presentation Sanda
Foisoreanu www.slideshare.net/michaelasanda
2014
Sound Benny Tonia - The Silent City
(Mdina)