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58 I APRIL 21, 2019 THE SUNDAY TIMES OF MALTA THE SUNDAY TIMES OF MALTA APRIL 21,, 2019 I 59 ·LIFE& WELLBEING HISTORY
A view of St George's Square, Valletta, in the mid-17th century, including the Romano Carapecchia's 1723 drawing of three of Valletta's water cisterns. COURTESY: 1615 fountain. NATIONAL LIBRARY OF MALTA The Wignacourt archway at Fleur-de-Lys and part of the aqueduct in the background. Jt happened this month Construction and inauguration of Wignacourt's aqueduct 1610-1615
JOSEPH F. GRIMA
On April21, 161!:, Grand Master Alof de Wignacourt inaugurated the first freshwater supply system to Valletta. Hitherto, the supply of water to Malta's capital .::ity had been a big ~ problem because only negligible sub terranean fresh'Vater reserves were known to exist on the city site. In fact, Cassarino's painting of Grand Master fresh water for drinking purposes was Alof de Wignacourt (1601-1622) who obtained from the Marsa spring of was determined to solve Valletta's Ghajn Filep, whlch meant a boatjour 'water problem'. COURTESY: ney of about five kilometres. In the A section of the aqueduct at Mrieflel. WIGNACOURT MUSEUM, RABAT event of a siege even this spring would be denied to the Valletta inhabitants. This problem was known to the that the expenditure involved would and Mriehel and from Mriehel to ordinary clay and was therefore ideal The fine buttressed tower at Flori ana, facing Sarria church. Knights when ttey built Valletta but be much higher that had been envis Santa Venera. for Bontadini's purpose. Grand Master Martino Garzes (1596- strategic consiC.erations had more aged 14 years earlier. Tomasucci gave up and returned The water canals were going to be 1601) was unsuccessful in his attempt or less forced them to develop the However, Wignacourt declared to Sicily. However, Wignacourt was placed on blocks or walls of stone bu:: to solve Valletta's 'water problem'. the waters; now that water has been About 600 men had worked on the The route of the Mount Sceberras peninsula. In fact, that he would meet most of the ex determined not to abandon the half Giovanni Attard advised the building led to her, the spirit rett:.rned. 1615." project but the Grand Mastel~ true to Wignacourt aqueduct. by law, every neuse in Valletta was penditure from his own pocket and completed scheme and, in 1612, he of an aqueduct on arches which From Santa Venera onwards, the his word, forked out almost all the bound to have a well which was to be that no taxes would be imposed to called in another engineer: Bon would be high or low according to the the aqueduct was to cross the road, ~ater canals wind their way under expenses from his own personal cof well-maintained and clean but, up till finance the project. The Order's tadino de Bontadini, from Bologna, land levels. In this way, the gradual so a large archway was built for this gfOund. A mall tower marks the junc fers. The project had cost over 155,000 the 1590s, the water problem had Council thanked him and accepted Italy. He was to be helped by three incline followed so far from Raba: purpose, with one large span and tion of the aqueduct wi:h the under scudi, of which only 40,000 were con become so acute that the Order was his generous proposal but also foremen, capi mastri: two Sicilians - would be continued. two small spans. The archway was ground canal at Santa venera, while, tributions by the Order's bakeries. literally forced to try to solve it. ordered that profits from the Order's Mastro Andrea from Trapani and decorated with neur-de-lys, part of in a street behind tht! St Cajetan A reminder of when piped water The first real attempt to obtain bakeries were to be directed to the Mastro Giuseppe from Palermo- and the Wignacourt family's coat-of parish church at Hamrun, there is was introduced to Valletta is the regular wate:c supplies to Valletta same purpose. the Maltese Mastro Giovanni Attard, l'About 600 men arms, which have given this locality still extant a small circular building Wignacourt fountain in Ordnance was during the magistracy of Grand Water reserves were quite plentiful who had all worked on the project its name, even though the original known as the Atocia Tu.:-ret. In Flori Street that was restored by Din l-Art Master Martino Garzes (1595-1601). in the high localities of the with Tomasucci. Attard ( c.1580- had worked on the archway was demolished years ago aha, in front of Sarria Omrch, a fine lfelwa over 30 years ago. There were In 1596, a Jesuit engineer, Padre Dingli/Rabat area. What the project c.1630), an employee of the Order of during World War II. .. buttressed tower bearing Wigna also other fountains, the most beauti Giacomo (Cariddi from Messina?), really entailed was the channelling of St John, lies buried in the former project but the However, enemy action was not the court's coat of arms marked the ful being perhaps the Marina Fountain was called in to try and provide a this water through an underground parish church of Lija. culprit. It was partly damaged by ar arrival of freshwater at that point. -vividly depicted by Du Cros (1748- solution. Initially, about 20,000 pipeline. Water was collected from So far, the water 'pipes' had been Grand Master, large military crane that attempted,:;