Malta's capital Valletta, named after a Grand Master of the maltese Order and founded in the 16th century, is the smallest capital city in the EU and a World Heritage Site. Valletta's new parliament building, built between 2011 and 2015 according to the designs of Italian architect Renzo Piano, is located on Freedom Square, close to the newly constructed southern city gate. The two new buildings are part of the Valletta City Gate project, which aimed to redesign the city portals. The special feature of the new parliament building is not only its unusual shape but also the facade design. A special limestone was used, which was quarried on Gozo and cut to size in Italy computer controlled. The partially projecting diamond-shaped facade elements are not only decorative ornaments, but also responsible to shade the window areas behind them.
New Parliament, Valletta
