The MHS History Awards & Public Lecture

Public Event

Strolls and Sights: Valletta, a City of Landmarks

by Mevrick Spiteri

at 6.30pm, Thursday 17^th November 2022

at The Refectory, The Archbishop’s Curia, Floriana

followed by

The MHS History Awards 2022

Synopsis

Valletta, through its history, always held important buildings, for public, military or religious purposes. Similarly, the houses of esteemed knights in various quarters of the city attracted the attention of many. Matteo Perez D’Aleccio in 1582 and G.F. Abela in 1647 both expanded on their “descriptio” of the city with specific references to these buildings. Buildings that were perceived as landmarks by contemporary society, linked Valletta’s topography, fortifications, streets and buildings into specific locales. This talk will explore the various colloquial names assigned to these places as they were recorded at the Officio delle Case.

The Speaker

Mevrick Spiteri holds his first degree in Archaeology and History from the University of Malta, and M.A. in Baroque Studies from the International Institute for Baroque Studies within the same university. Mevrick’s main areas of research are historic landscape studies and urban history, particularly aspects related to the transformation of spaces, and their social and economic history. He has published extensively with his latest book entitled The Houses of Baroque Valletta 1650-1750. Property redevelopment from records of the Officio delle Case: socio-economic reflections on civil buildings. In 2016 he was awarded the MHS History Award for Emerging Scholars.