Maqluba (Malta)

Il-Maqluba
Qrendi
Location Qrendi
Basin countries Malta
Surface area 6,000 square metres (65,000 sq ft)
Average depth 15 m (49 ft)

Il-Maqluba (meaning reversed or upside-down in Maltese) is a sinkhole with a surface area of around 6000m² situated in the village of Qrendi in Malta.

Geological formation

Like all sinkholes, this cavity was formed by the collapse of a limestone floor situated above a cavity hollowed out by water flowing in a karstic relief. The diameter is around 50m, and the depth is around 15m, the area approximately 6000m² and the perimeter 300m.[1]

Appearance of the cavity

The cavity appeared violently on 23 November 1343 during a violent storm, or possibly an earthquake.[2]

Legends

The spectacular formation is at the origin of numerous legends. One of them recounts that the place was inhabited by people who lived such dissolute lives that a neighbour warned them against their sinful ways, without them taking notice. God therefore wished to punish the sinners by engulfing the hamlet, saving only the wise neighbour. The angels then threw a fragment into the sea, creating the isle of Filfla.[1][3]

St Matthew's Chapel

A chapel consecrated to Saint Matthew was built on the edge of the sinkhole, and has been in existence since at least the 14th century, probably dating back to the 11th century.[4]

Natural environment

The sinkhole is the only one in Malta that is not covered in sediment. The natural environment is protected and integrated in the list of Natura 2000 in Malta. Dense scrubland is dominated by laurel and includes the presence of Malta's national tree, Tetraclinis articulata, known in Maltese as għargħar, as well as Maltese Salsola, (Salsola melitensis), an endemic species on the archipelago. The sinkhole is also a nesting site for the national bird of Malta, the blue rock thrush (Monticola solitarius).

The site is open to visitors.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 "Il-Maqluba, Qrendi, Malta, Legends, myths & folklore". Geulogy. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
  2. ↑ "Earthquakes in Malta". Maltese History & Heritage. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  3. ↑ Vanhove, Martine (1993). Harrassowitz Verlag, Otto, ed. "La langue maltaise: études syntaxiques d'un dialecte arabe "périphérique"". Geulogy (in French). pp. 477–533. ISBN 9783447033428. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
  4. ↑ Cini, George. "Filfla too had a chapel dedicated to Our Lady", Times of Malta, Malta, 4 January 2005. Retrieved on 18 September 2016.
  5. ↑ "Il-Maqluba, Qrendi- A Sinkhole in Malta". movingonupaway (in Maltese). pp. 477–533. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
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