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maltatoday, SUNDAY, 8 MARCH 2015 News 17 ing the war…" No prize for guessing which option the disgruntled miners went for, however Ripard also said that they took longer than expected to build the tunnels, resulting in un- necessary loss of life during Malta's period as the "most heavily bombed" country during World War II. The British also allowed families to build their own shelters on the site during the war, against the then- princely sum of £100 each. Mostly constructed by Gozitan miners – who were subsequently also employed for similar purposes in Gibraltar – evi- dence of these shelters can also be found in places like Sliema, since people found them desirable for their own private residences. Visitors on the tour were also shown a well-pre- served cast-iron water boiler on the site, which dates back from around the 1850s. Moving further through the site Ripard recounted how the underbelly of Valletta was crucial during the time of the Knights for one simple reason – water storage. While storing food was "never really a problem" thanks to the many granaries available to them on the island, water presented its own challenges. The Knights even- tually brought in their own specialists on the site, chief among them being a certain Carapeccia, who conducted a full-scale survey of the Maltese wa- ter situation, thus also leading to the creation of the title of 'Fontaniere'. The Knights also urged all citizens to quarry their own residences, which resulted in a number of wells around the island, over and above the mu- nicipal wells that were built. The tour also continued 'over ground', as visitors were regaled with historical observations on areas of Valletta they may have overlooked over the years, or taken for granted. Among them is the ominous 'hook' jutting out of the wall in St John Street – which the Knights used to restrain errant slaves while they were being whipped, and the British used to determine the fitness of prospec- tive high-ranking soldiers – as well as a nearby niche around the corner of the same street and Merchants Street. Looking suspiciously like a stool hewn into the wall, Ripard revealed that it in fact served as the Knights' equivalent of the medieval 'stocks', as petty criminals were forced to sit on it – their hands were restrained on the still-visible clamps on either side to the wall – and subject themselves to public humiliation. "This was a good way of showing the people leaving mass at St John's Co-Cathedral what would become of them if they succumbed to petty crimes," Ripard said. "In the case of more serious crimes, the Knights just got to the point straight away." Watch the video on www.maltato- day.com.mt and pricey shelters A common site on the corner of Merchants Street belies a curious history: the 'stool' hewn into the wall served a similar function to the medieval stocks Bane of slaves and soldiers: the legendary 'hook' of St John Street Water boiler dating from the 1800s During the war, sections of the underground shelters were also sold to individual families