Address: Tul Il-Kosta, Naxxar, Island of Malta, Malta
Attraction Location
Ghallis Tower Videos
Għallis Tower
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Nearest attraction: Placeholder
Brief History:
This Tower is one of thirteen watch towers built by Grand Master de Redin between 1658 and 1659.
Not built to resist attack but to provide early warning of attack. This replaced the tradition of farmers manning 60 lookout posts
Ghallis Tower is about 12m high and has a 9m square base. The walls consist of an inner and outer skin of masonry with a solid gravel infill.
These watchtowers were manned by the Dejma, a local military corps, with four men in each tower. On sighting the enemy they waved a red flag by day or lit a bonfire by night to communicate a warning signal from one watch tower to the next and on to Valletta.
The tower was restored in 1996 and is open to visitors by appointment from their caretakers Din l-Art Ħelwa.
This video was produced as part of an assignment for MCAST Art and Design in conjunction with MTA.
Malta Coast Road St Marks Tower
St Marks Tower (Qalet Marku Tower), Qrejten Point, Bahar ic-Caghaq, Malta
St Marks Tower (Qalet Marku Tower) is located on a rolling hilltop point or an island connected to the land via a spit. St Marks Tower is one of the thirteen fortified watchtowers built by Grand Master Martin de Redin of the Knights Of Malta. The land St Marks Tower is located on has numerous puzzling rock lines. Some very thick, others very sharp. In between these lines the rock is very rough and pock marked.
Naxxar Parish Church
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Brief History:
Built between 1616 and 1630 in place of several other smaller churches and chapels.
Originally built in the shape of a cross but was enlarged by adding two side isles and consequently the facade had to also be rebuilt.
The church houses a number of works by Lorenzo Gafà, Mattia Preti, Guido Reni and Francesco Zahra.
This video was produced as part of an assignment for MCAST Art and Design in conjunction with MTA.
Salina Catacombs
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Brief History:
The Salina Catacombs date back to between the 2nd and 4th centuries AD.
The site consists of five small catacombs and several individual tombs and was initially discovered in 1721, when a tomb piled with skeletons was uncovered.
In 1937 the site was rediscovered by Charles Zammit.
Unfortunately most remaining tombs are filled with rubble and inaccessible, but in 1964 the outstanding catacomb was protected with a wooden gate.
This video was produced as part of an assignment for MCAST Art and Design in conjunction with MTA.
Saint Paul's Chapel
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Brief History: Naxxar is said to be one of the first places to have been converted to christianity by saint Paul.
It is said that the san pawl tat-targa chapel marks the place from which saint Paul preached and was heard speaking from the neighboring island of gozo some 20km away.
Built at the turn of the 18th century in place of another church which had been destroyed.
The church houses a painting by Francesco Zahra, the prominent 18th century Maltese painter depicting St Paul preaching to the Maltese after the shipwreck.
The statue was built in 1770 as an act of devotion and faces a cross which marks the position of the older church which had been demolished.
This video was produced as part of an assignment for MCAST Art and Design in conjunction with MTA.
Cart Ruts
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Brief History:
Cart Ruts are a series of parallel lines which criss-cross all over the island carved into the hard upper layer of stone.
Appearing in over a 150 different locations around malta with their shape remaining fairly constant.
The parallel lines are all about 140 cm apart which is roughly the same as modern day trains.
Tough evidence of cart ruts appears elsewhere in the world malta has more than the rest of the world combined.
Various theories exist to their origin. Including Erich von Daniken who wrote about them having alien origins.
The most agreed upon the yet unproven theory that they are a complex road system created by carts repeatedly passing from the same place but they do not lead to any known site of the period.
This video was produced as part of an assignment for MCAST Art and Design in conjunction with MTA.