Gran Castello Historic House

About the museum

The Gran Castello Historic House is a group of interlinked houses in Bernardo De Opuo Street, inside the Ċittadella of Victoria. The oldest parts go back to the late 15th and early 16th centuries, and their architecture shows Sicilian and Catalan influence and a refined Late Gothic style. The quality of the buildings suggests wealthy owners. They are the only surviving examples of late medieval domestic architecture in Gozo.

The houses were rehabilitated as a museum in 1983 and opened to the public as the Folklore Museum. Heritage Malta has since been turning the site into a historic house museum that evokes an 18th-century urban home, while keeping displays on domestic, rural and traditional life on the island.

On the ground floor and mezzanine of the southern house visitors see a reconstructed household with work and living spaces for the servants. The ground floor of the central house is devoted to rural trades, above all farming, and its large mill room holds a mill driven by animals. The first floor, once the living quarters of the wealthy family, has period furniture, a kitchen, bedrooms, a dining room, a children’s room and a weaving room with tools such as a cotton gin and a spinning wheel. An audio-visual presentation shows the late medieval house group in its urban setting, and a garden invites visitors to relax at the end of the visit.

Highlights

• Reconstructed 18th-century household with servants’ quarters
• Mill room with a large animal-driven mill
• Weaving room with a cotton gin and spinning wheel; weaving demonstrations on Wednesdays from July to September
• Audio-visual presentation on the late medieval house group
• Garden with local fruit trees, herbs and flowers

Permanent exhibitions

• Historic house of the Ċittadella – Reconstructed 18th-century household with kitchen, bedrooms, dining room, children’s room and servants’ quarters, set in a cluster of late medieval houses.
• Mill room and domestic crafts – A large mill driven by animals, farming tools and a weaving room with a cotton gin and a spinning wheel.

Founded

1983

Operated by

Heritage Malta

Admission & discounts

Admission is sold as the Ċittadella combo ticket, which is also listed for the Old Prison. Infants aged 1–5 enter free of charge, as do Heritage Malta members and Heritage Malta Passport holders. Weaving demonstrations are included in the ticket.

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: not available
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The ground-floor rooms are on one level. The upper floors can only be reached by stairs, but each of the houses has its own ground-floor entrance, which staff open on request. One accessible unisex toilet is at the main entrance. Assistance dogs are welcome. An access statement is available on the Heritage Malta website.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

Amenities & dining

Seating in the exhibition rooms, in the garden and on the terrace.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit