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maltatoday | SUNDAY • 29 AUGUST 2021
HERITAGE
of Valletta's underworld
derground world of Valletta,
my team and I used three en-
trances to access the labyrinth
of lost tunnels leading to the
huge cisterns.
Despite the humidity, some
tunnel shelters are still deco-
rated with beautiful tiles and
paintings revealing religious
devotion. There are also graf-
fiti, symbols and historical
marks from enemies who at-
tacked Malta at the time, a sign
of the torment suffered. The
experience has shown me that
there is so much more to Val-
letta than what first meets the
eye."
Giving the public a way to al-
so experience this subterrane-
an network first-hand is anoth-
er key driver of the project, Mr
Gauci explains in conclusion.
"Valletta's underworld is a sig-
nificant part of our cultural
heritage, with enormous scope
not just for tourism but also for
education. Imagine a student
seeing a 3D model of these
sites instead of solely learning
about them via text descrip-
tions. Plus, those who can't
venture down to the tunnels
in person, for whatever reason,
will still be able to experience
these structures through the
model. We believe we're mak-
ing history come alive through
our work, and we hope to in-
spire the continued study and
celebration of Malta's legacy
for years to come."
"These structures
give us important
insights into what
life must have been
like for people back
then, so preserving
them for future
generations is
paramount."
