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The fascination of Mdina, the old capital of Malta, never dims. People, whether local or foreign, are still fascinated by its history, its old houses, palaces, churches, and narrow streets where a magical atmosphere is created by lamplight at night.
In this city, which saw its beginning more than 4,000 years ago, one can still find buildings which go back centuries. Some, like Palazzo Falson – previously known as The Norman House – is the second oldest building in Mdina and has been turned into a museum where one can travel back in time and discover the Island’s history.
Stinted out that the one-storey building of the 13th century was much larger and extended to what today is Bastions Square.
In 1927, the palazzo was bought in parts by Captain Olof Gollcher who lived in it with his wife till 1962 when he died. Captain Gollcher (1889-1962) was the son of Chev Gustav Gollcher, a prosperous shipping merchant of Swedish descent. Olof, a distinguished soldier who served in both World Wars, managed to buy the rest of the building and it was he who renamed the palazzo as ‘The Norman House’ due to its architectural features.
Besides being a soldier of distinction, Olof Gollcher was a Knight of the Venerable Order of St John and Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE). He was also a philanthropist who had a passion for antiques and objets d’art. It was his wish that the ‘Norman House’ should be turned into a museum exhibiting the diverse collections he had acquired during the years, including silver, furniture, oriental carpets , a rare collection of books and manuscripts, jewellery, armour and much more.
In 2001, Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti entered into an agreement with the Gollcher Foundation whereby Patrimonju was to restore ‘The Norman House’ to its former glory and to turn it into a state of the art historic house Museum. Prior to its restoration, the palazzo’s building fabric had deteriorated due to environmental factors and lack of necessary upkeep. This necessitated extensive and careful work to restore the Palazzo its pristine glory and beauty. After years of diligent work the Museum is now open to visitors who are more than welcome to visit this beautiful building or to admire the silver, art, armour and book collections.
JOYCE GUILLAUMIER
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