Lippija Tower ( mt, Torri ta' Lippija), also known as Ġnejna Tower ( mt, Torri tal-Ġnejna), is a small

watchtower A watchtower or watch tower is a type of fortification used in many parts of the world. It differs from a regular tower in that its primary use is military and from a turret in that it is usually a freestanding structure. Its main purpose is to ...

Ġnejna Bay Ġnejna Bay () is a popular tourist destination located about 1 kilometer from the village of Mġarr on the western coast of Malta. The beach surrounding the bay is mostly sandy. A secluded strip of shore under the steep cliff on the northern side ...

, limits of

Mġarr Mġarr ( mt, L-Imġarr), formerly known as ''Mgiarro'', is a village in the Northern Region of Malta. Mġarr is a typical rural village situated in an isolated region, west of Mosta. It is surrounded with rich farmland and vineyards. Many of it ...

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

. It was completed in 1637 as the first of the

Lascaris towers The Laskaris or Lascaris ( el, Λάσκαρις, later Λάσκαρης) family was a Byzantine Greek noble family whose members formed the ruling dynasty of the Empire of Nicaea from 1204 to 1261 and remained among the senior nobility up to the d ...

. Today, the tower is in good condition.

History

Lippija Tower was built in 1637 on the edge of

Wardija Ridge Wardija Ridge is a scenic plateau, one of a group in the north of Mġarr, Malta, just outside of Wardija. Wardija ridge is part of a series of hills that run on a southwest-northeast axis from the Għajn Tuffieħa area in Mġarr to the Xemxija Bay ...

overlooking

on the northwest coast of Malta. The tower has

Għajn Tuffieħa Għajn Tuffieħa is a bay and sandy, red beach which is located in Mġarr, Malta. The bay is south of Golden Bay. It is quieter than Golden Bay and often visited by Maltese natives themselves as well as tourist visitors. To reach this beach, one ...

and

Nadur Tower Nadur Tower ( mt, Torri tan-Nadur) is a small watchtower in Binġemma Gap, limits of Rabat, Malta. It was completed in 1637 as the third of the Lascaris towers. Today, the tower is in good condition. History Nadur Tower was built in 1637 at Bi ...

s in its line of sight. The construction of the tower was personally financed by

Giovanni Paolo Lascaris Giovanni Paolo Lascaris di Ventimiglia e Castellar ( Maltese: ''Laskri'') (28 June 156014 August 1657) was an Italian nobleman and Grand Master of the Knights of Malta. Early life Lascaris was born on 28 June 1560, the second son of Giannetto ...

. The tower was built on the site of a medieval watch post. It was designed by the Italian architect

Vincenzo Maculani Vincenzo Maculani (11 September 1578 – 16 February 1667) was an Italian Catholic Cardinal, inquisitor and military architect. He was known as a severe man, harsh and without compassion, who preferred the black ''cappa'' of his order to the ...

. It is almost identical to Għajn Tuffieħa Tower, having a square plan and two floors topped by a flat roof with a parapet. Each floor has a single room, and access to the upper floor was originally by a wooden ladder. Originally the tower was known as ''Torre del Migiarro'' and had a chapel dedicated to Santa Agatha.

Present day

By the early 2000s, Lippija Tower was abandoned and it was in danger of collapsing. It was restored by the Ministry of Resources and Infrastructure in 2003, and it is now in good condition.

References

External links

National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands
{{Historic Watch Towers of Malta Lascaris towers Towers completed in 1637 Mġarr National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands 1637 establishments in Malta