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Tomasz Dziubinski - Photography | all galleries >> Galleries >> MALTA 2012 > Mdina
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©2012 By Tomasz Dziubinski

Mdina

Mdina, Malta

Mdina is a UNESCO World Heritage site (Tentative List)

Mdina, Città Vecchia, or Città Notabile, (English: Notabile, or Imdina; Phoenician: מֶלִיטָה, Melitta) is the old capital of Malta. Mdina is a medieval walled town situated on a hill in the centre of the island. Punic remains uncovered beyond the city’s walls suggest the importance of the general region to Malta’s Phoenician settlers. Mdina is commonly called the "Silent City" by natives and visitors. The town is still confined within its walls, and has a population of just over three hundred, but it is contiguous with the village of Rabat, which takes its name from the Arabic word for suburb, and has a population of over 11,000.

St. Paul's Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral in the city of Mdina, in Malta. It is built on the site where governor Publius was reported to have met Saint Paul following his shipwreck off the Maltese coast.

According to tradition, the first Cathedral of Malta was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, Mother of God but, having fallen into ruin during the Muslim period, it was rebuilt following the Norman conquest and re-dedicated to St Paul. The old church was modified and enlarged several times.

The building we can see today was designed by the architect Lorenzo Gafa in Baroque style, it was built between 1697 and 1702 to replace a ruined Norman cathedral destroyed by the 1693 earthquake on Malta. Despite this, several artifacts and edifices survived including the painting by the Calabrian artist Mattia Preti depicting the conversion of Saint Paul, a 15th-century Tuscan painting of the Madonna and Child, and frescoes in the apse which illustrate Paul's shipwreck.


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Nikon D800 ,Nikkor AF-S 14-24mm f/2.8G ED
1/250s f/8.0 at 24.0mm iso100 full exif

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fotabug22-Nov-2012 05:46
What an interesting history this all has. Thanks for sharing the photo and information
Cindi Smith22-Nov-2012 03:53
I like this...perfect exposure and detail! Would love to visit there one day! V
Helen Betts21-Nov-2012 20:57
That red adds a delightful splash to this venerable old building. V.
Hans Novak21-Nov-2012 17:50
T O P !
Walter Otto Koenig21-Nov-2012 16:30
Superb with this sharpness and clarity and vivid colors. "V"
Guest 21-Nov-2012 16:00
Lovely textures, colors and setting for those big square umbrellas, red and white.
Jim Coffman21-Nov-2012 13:17
Well composed and captured!
CM Kwan21-Nov-2012 12:42
Excellent compositon and capture, thanks for your information about this amazing place! V