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This blog is dedicated to Malta - my island home. My aim is not to bore you with history but to share my thoughts and a few facts together with a photo or two. For a more in -depth background of the island please go here. The purpose of this blog is not to point out the short-comings of the island. There are plenty that do that already. My wish is to show you the beauty of an island at the cross roads of the Mediterranean, a melting pot of history; a place where fact and fiction are sometimes fused to create unique myths and legends; a country that has been conquered so many times that our culture is a mish mesh of the lands that surround us and of lands far away. I confess that my greatest desire is to make you fall in love with this tiny enchanting island.

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Thursday 14 June 2012

The Banca Giuratale

Medieval Mdina (1)

The Banca Giuratale (or Municipal Palace) is a Baroque building in Mdina’s main street. This building was designed by de Mondion and built in 1726 by Grand Master de Vilhena to house the offices of the civil administration of the island. The façade is quite imposing and heavily decorated, as was common during this period.

Medieval Mdina (2)

Medieval Mdina (3)

 

The civil administration held the district court in this building until 1831 after which it was leased to private individuals. It was taken over by the Education department in 1881 and was used as a secondary school until 1969. It was then leased to the Sisters of St Dorothy for a short period of time and functioned as a private school. Today, the Banca Giuratale houses part of the national archives, specifically court proceedings from 1530 to 1900. An exhibition of portraits of Maltese personalities is on permanent display in the hallways of this palace.

I have my own special ties with this building since I went to school there for 3 short years in the mid-1970s.

Medieval Mdina (4)

Main Staircase

Medieval Mdina 107

Banca Giuratale – Facade

 

Banca Giuratale

Villegaignon Street

Mdina

Opening hours:

Monday 8.00a.m. – 2.00p.m. / 3.00p.m. – 7.30p.m.

Tuesday/Wednesday/Friday 8.00a.m. – 2.00p.m.

Thursday 10.00a.m. – 2.00p.m.

6 comments:

  1. That building is intricately decorated. I love the facade. It exudes the memories of the time it was built.

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  2. That is gorgeous. Lucky you for having spent so much time there!

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  3. What an impressive place to have studied! As usual, your images are just stunning.

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  4. That was a beautiful school you went to !

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  5. Wow...stunning Loree..love it all... the first and the third shots are so powerful and mesmerizing....and the last one as well ..fabulous!! Thanks for always sharing such beauty!
    Victoria

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  6. Hi Loree, What a cool place to go to school! Lovely architecture :)

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