The Azure Window: the end of an icon

The Azure Window was a natural limestone arch that rose majestically out of the blue Mediterranean sea to a height of 28 metres (92 feet). It was located in Dwejra, Gozo.

The arch was created when two limestone caves collapsed on some unrecorded day in history. It was a natural attraction much-loved both by the Maltese and by thousands of tourists who visited it on a daily basis and captured its unique beauty in countless images.

 After a night of storms and gale-force winds, the arch succumbed to the elements and it collapsed into the sea this morning. Nothing is left where the arch once stood, not even the stacks. This iconic feature is gone forever and the Azure Window will not only live on in our memories and our photographs.

Thankfully, in this age of social media, images and videos of the Azure Window are plentiful but it is still sad to think that there will be generations of children who will grow up without seeing it for themselves.

During its lifetime, the Azure Window  was the backdrop for some scenes in movies like Clash of the Titans (1981), The Count of  Monte Cristo (2002) and in the TV series Game of Thrones. In 2016, clothing designer Hugo Boss shot an ad campaign featuring cliff diver David Colturi jumping off of the Azure Window.

Hugo Boss - Superblack suit from Kopterworx on Vimeo.

The photos in this article were taken almost exactly 14 years ago on 5th March 2003.

Related links:

• Malta and the Movies: Clash of the Titians (1981)
• Dwejra and the Azure Window

Malta And The Movies (2): Clash Of The Titans (1981 version)

It’s hard to believe that so many years have passed since this movie first came out and that it has now been re-released. Prior to the advent of computer generated animation, a special effects technique known as stop motion animation was used to create the mythological creatures in the movie. Clash Of The Titans is an adaptation of the Greek myth of Perseus and his quest to destroy both the Gorgon, Medusa, and the Kraken sea monster to save princess Andromeda. The storyline in the movie is rather different from the original myth – but then, movies usually are. Laurence Olivier as Zeus, Ursula Andress as Aphrodite, Harry Hamlin as Perseus and Claire Bloom as Hera were amongst the stellar cast.

Although many people are familiar with the original movie and have probably seen it, not many people know that a portion of the movie was filmed on the island of Gozo (one of the three major islands that make up the Maltese archipelago). The scene below, with the Kraken rising out of the sea, was filmed at the Azure Window, one of the most recognisable landmarks in Gozo. The clip is a bit long but you can see the Azure Window at 1:19.