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This blog is dedicated to Malta - my island home. My aim is not to bore you with history but to share my thoughts and a few facts together with a photo or two. For a more in -depth background of the island please go here. The purpose of this blog is not to point out the short-comings of the island. There are plenty that do that already. My wish is to show you the beauty of an island at the cross roads of the Mediterranean, a melting pot of history; a place where fact and fiction are sometimes fused to create unique myths and legends; a country that has been conquered so many times that our culture is a mish mesh of the lands that surround us and of lands far away. I confess that my greatest desire is to make you fall in love with this tiny enchanting island.

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Wednesday 7 March 2012

X Miles To Nowhere (or Defaced Milestones)

Fawwara 256

Many visitors to these islands are intrigued when they see these defaced milestones. Some may wonder why these milestones have been defaced. It was not due to a thoughtless act of vandalism. These milestones were defaced during the last World War. During the worst of the war it was thought that an Axis invasion was imminent, so all existing milestones were defaced in the hope that any potential invaders would be confused as to their whereabouts. In some cases, even the name of the town was removed from the stone. Needless to say, in this day and age, such a precaution would be futile. These milestones still stand, serving as a reminder of a very different way of life.

Photographed at Fawwara

April 2011

5 comments:

  1. 'During the worst of the war it was thought that an Axis invasion was imminent, so all existing milestones were defaced in the hope that any potential invaders would be confused as to their whereabouts.'

    Wow! That is very interesting and I never would have imagined such a thing.

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  2. That is indeed very interesting, I had no clue!

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  3. You live in such an interesting place!

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  4. Fascinating Blog with some great photos, i am really enjoying exploring it.

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  5. Thanks for explaining this! I had already wondered when I saw this milestone in Mdina: http://andreasmoser.wordpress.com/2012/02/29/sign-post-mdina-malta/

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