La Borsa, also known as the Exchange Buildings, is a 19th-century building in

Valletta Valletta (, mt, il-Belt Valletta, ) is an Local councils of Malta, administrative unit and capital city, capital of Malta. Located on the Malta (island), main island, between Marsamxett Harbour to the west and the Grand Harbour to the east, i ...

, Malta, which houses '' The Malta Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry''. The site of La Borsa was originally occupied by a house which belonged to the Priory of Castile. In 1853, the house was handed over to The Malta Chamber of Commerce and Enterprise, which had been formed in 1848. It was demolished to make way for new premises which were designed by the Maltese architect

Giuseppe Bonavia Giuseppe Bonavia (1821 – 2 September 1885) was a Maltese draughtsman and architect who was mainly active in the second half of the 19th century. Born in Valletta, he was initially a clerk of works with the Royal Engineers, before becoming the H ...

. Works were undertaken by the contractor Michelangelo Azzopardi, and the building was inaugurated in March 1857. Some features within the building include the Lewis Farrugia Courtyard, Sir Agostino Portelli Hall, the Aula Conciliaris (Council Room), the Banif Lecture Hall and the BOV Meeting Room. It is scheduled as a Grade 1 national monument by the

Malta Environment and Planning Authority The Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA, mt, L-Awtorità ta' Malta dwar l-Ambjent u l-Ippjanar) was the national agency responsible for the environment and planning in Malta. It was established to regulate the environment and planning ...

Architecture

La Borsa was designed by

in the Neoclassical architectural style. Its design contrasts with Valletta's traditional architecture. Its façade has an imposing symmetrical

colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or curv ...

in the

Ionic order The Ionic order is one of the three canonic orders of classical architecture, the other two being the Doric and the Corinthian. There are two lesser orders: the Tuscan (a plainer Doric), and the rich variant of Corinthian called the composite or ...

. It has three floors above street level and an underground level. Inaugurated in 1848, the building's design is rather simple but elegant at the same time.Felice, David (2013) in Bonello, Giovanni (ed.).
La Borsa – The People, The Building, The History
'. p. 45. .

References

External links

* {{Valletta Buildings and structures in Valletta Buildings and structures completed in 1857 Neoclassical architecture in Malta 1857 establishments in Malta Office buildings in Malta