Valletta Market
| Is-Suq tal-Belt | |
|---|---|
Is-Suq tal-Belt after renovation
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| Alternative names | Valletta Market Covered Market Is-Suq l-Antik |
| General information | |
| Status | Renovated |
| 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°ECoordinates: 35°53′52.5″N 14°30′51.9″E / 35.897917°N 14.514417°E |
| Current tenants | Arkadia Ltd |
| Construction started | 1859 |
| Completed | 1861 |
| Renovated | 1940s (reconstruction) 1970 2016–17 |
| Cost | £3934 |
| Technical details | |
| Material | Cast iron, wrought iron and limestone |
| Floor count | 3 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Hector Zimelli |
| Website | |
| www.issuqtalbelt.online | |
Is-Suq tal-Belt (IPA: [ɪs suːʔ tɐl bɛlt]; Maltese for "City Market" or "Valletta Market"), also known as the Covered Market, is a 19th-century market hall located in Valletta, Malta. It is notable for being the first building in Malta to be constructed mostly of iron. The building was severely damaged in World War II, and the rebuilding was insensitive to the original structure. Further alterations were made in later decades, and the market began to decline in the 1970s. An attempt to rebrand it as a shopping arcade known as Ixtri Malti (Buy Maltese) in the 1980s was unsuccessful. The market continued to decline until it was renovated in 2016–17, and reopened as a food market in January 2018.
A 16th century map shows that the site, now occupied by the present market was a square named Piazza del malcantone. The site was used as part of the gallows parade of a guilty person, which was humiliated and tortured around Valletta, before being hanged in Floriana. At one point, during the rule of the Order of St. John, the first market was built on site. During the early British period, it was found to have several issues and hence was demolished.
Plans to reconstruct 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. Construction cost £3934, and the market originally contained 153 stalls and 65 cellars.
The building was bombed on 7 April 1942, during World War II, 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. The market thrived for a few more years, before it began to decline in the mid-1970s.
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