Lija Belvedere Tower

Lija Belvedere Tower
View of the Lija Belvedere Tower
General information
Status	Intact
Type	Folly
Architectural style	Neoclassic
Location	Lija, Malta
Named for	Lija
Completed	1857
Owner	Government of Malta
Technical details
Material	Limestone
Design and construction
Architect(s)	Giuseppe Bonavia

The Lija Belvedere Tower (Maltese: Torri Belvedere) is a belvedere in Lija, Malta. It was built in the 19th century as a folly within a private garden, and it is now located on a roundabout.

History

Villa Gourgion

The belvedere tower was built in 1857 as a folly within the gardens of Villa Gourgion, a 17th-century villa which belonged to the Marquis Depiro.[1] It was designed by the architect Giuseppe Bonavia.[2]

In the 1950s, part of the villa's garden was destroyed to make way for Transfiguration Avenue. The belvedere was retained as a roundabout, on the avenue and is now one of Lija's landmarks.[3]

The tower was restored between 1995 and 1996, and is listed as a Grade 1 property by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority.[3][4] It is also listed on the National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands as part of Villa Gourgion.[1]

References

1. "Villa Gourgion" (PDF). National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands. 28 December 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 October 2015. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
2. "Villa Gourgion and the Lija Belvedere". user.orbit.net.mt. Archived from the original on 5 February 2015. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
3. "MEPA to safeguard vistas to Lija Belvedere Tower". MEPA. 19 July 2008. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
4. Baldacchino, Godfrey, ed. (2012). Extreme Heritage Management: The Practices and Policies of Densely Populated Islands. Berghahn Books. p. 61. ISBN 9780857452603.

35.9020°N 14.4487°E / 35.9020; 14.4487