Valletta Market

Valletta Market
Is-Suq tal-Belt

Front façade of the market
Alternative names Covered Market
General information
Status Intact
Type Market hall
Architectural style Victorian
Location Valletta, Malta
Coordinates 35°53′52.5″N 14°30′51.9″E / 35.897917°N 14.514417°E / 35.897917; 14.514417
Current tenants Arkadia Ltd
Construction started 1859
Completed 1861
Renovated 1970
2016–present
Cost £3934
Technical details
Material Cast iron, wrought iron and limestone
Floor count 3
Design and construction
Architect Hector Zimelli

The Valletta Market (Maltese: Is-Suq tal-Belt, IPA: [ɪs suːʔ tɐl bɛlt]; meaning "City Market"), also known as the Covered Market, is a 19th-century market hall in Valletta, Malta. It is notable for being the first building in Malta to be constructed mostly of iron. It began to decline in the 1980s, but the building is currently being renovated and there are plans to convert it into a shopping centre.

History

Plans to construct a covered market in Valletta began in 1845, and the Valletta Market was built between 1859 and 1861 on the site of the old prisons. The building was designed by the Superintendent of Public Works, Hector Zimelli, but was completed under the direction of Emanuele Luigi Galizia.[1] Construction cost £3934,[2] and the market originally contained 153 stalls and 65 cellars.[3]

The building was bombed on 7 April 1942, during the Second World War, destroying one third of the building. The damaged parts were repaired soon afterwards, but were not rebuilt to the original plan and the roof's symmetry was lost. By 1966, the market no longer met hygiene standards so it was overhauled. In 1970, two new floors were built and a pair of escalators were installed.[4] The market thrived for a few more years, before it began to decline in the mid-1970s.[3]

In 1982, the food market was transferred to Floriana, and a year later the Valletta Market was re-branded as a shopping arcade called Ixtri Malti (Buy Maltese). This move was highly unsuccessful, and the food market moved back to Valletta in 1989. Despite this, the market continued to decline.[3]

The Malta Environment and Planning Authority scheduled the building as a Grade 1 national monument on 28 March 2012.[1]

Plans for the restoration of the Valletta Market began following Valletta's nomination for European Capital of Culture 2018. The government deemed restoration of the structure as part of the Valletta regeneration master plan.[4] The building has been leased to the supermarket chain Arkadia Co. Ltd for 65 years. Restoration is estimated to cost around €7 million, and it is expected to be complete by May 2017.[5] It is planned that 1980s additions to the building be dismantled, while the original elements of the structure are to be preserved. Once restored, it is planned that the stalls within the building be leased to shops or catering establishments,[3] while part of the building is to be used for cultural activities.[6]

The renovation of the Valletta Market began in May 2016 and is currently underway.[7]

Architecture

Interior of the Valletta Market

The Valletta Market has a rectangular plan, and the walls and arches making up its three floors are built of limestone like many other buildings in Malta. However, the roof is made of cast and wrought iron decked in timber, and it is supported on cast iron columns and trusses.[2][8] This use of iron makes it an unusual structure,[9] and it was the first building in Malta to be constructed mostly of pre-fabricated iron.[8][1] Iron had been used in earlier structures on the island, such as the Naval Bakery and the Corradino Prisons, but on a much smaller scale than the Valletta Market.[1]

The designs of the Valletta Market was inspired from the Convent Garden (London)[8][10] and Halles Centrales (Paris).[10][11] The design of the Valletta Market influenced similar projects elsewhere in the British Empire, including in Calcutta.[3]

Further reading

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Is-Suq tal-Belt.
  1. 1 2 3 4 "One World – Protecting the most significant buildings, monuments and features of Valletta (17)". Times of Malta. 28 June 2008. Archived from the original on 8 March 2012.
  2. 1 2 Baldacchino, Lisa Gwen (23 December 2010). "Spotlight on Valletta's covered market". Times of Malta. Archived from the original on 24 April 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Micallef, Keith (10 December 2015). "Valletta's colonial gem set to receive a total makeover". Times of Malta. Archived from the original on 10 December 2015.
  4. 1 2 "The Government of Malta – Call for Expression of Ideas and Proposals" (PDF). Government Property Department. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 December 2015.
  5. ↑ Callus, Leonard (13 January 2016). "Transfer of Valletta indoor market to Arkadia unanimously approved". Times of Malta. Archived from the original on 13 January 2016.
  6. ↑ "The regeneration and conservation of the covered market (is-Suq tal-Belt)". Valletta 2018 Foundation. Archived from the original on 21 September 2015.
  7. ↑ Carabott, Sarah (2 May 2016). "A farewell to Is-Suq tal-Belt". Times of Malta. Archived from the original on 3 May 2016.
  8. 1 2 3 Borg, Malcolm (2001). British Colonial Architecture: Malta, 1800-1900. Publishers Enterprises Group. pp. 10, 63–64. ISBN 9789990903003.
  9. ↑ Bugeja, Lino (4 January 2015). "Valletta – vibrant city of many styles". Times of Malta. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
  10. 1 2 Felice, David (2013). "The Exchange Buildings". In Bonello, Giovann. La Borsa – The People, The Building, The History. p. 45. ISBN 9789995733759.
  11. ↑ Borg, Malcolm (2001). British Colonial Architecture: Malta, 1800-1900. Publishers Enterprises Group. p. 138. ISBN 9789990903003.
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