Maltese Stone Hut

Photo: Jeffrey Sciberras
Maltese name: Girna
Occurrence on the Islands: fairly distributed on the western side and North of Malta, rare on Comino and Gozo. In Gozo they are found mainly in the south-east of the island
Found: mainly On garigue plains, close to old cultivated land
purpose of the huts: Most probably for tool storage
Other info: The Maltese Stone Huts are unique in shape to other stone huts found on other Mediterranean islands. they are more circular, rather than quadrant. Most local Stone huts are of this shape, only the largest ones seem rectangular. they are mostly made up of Upper Coralline limestone stones.
All Stone houses found solely in the open countryside are very old, not sure exactly how much. They are part of our agricultural and historical heritage, and they are protected by law (i think). they go aesthetically well with the pink thyme and karst environment.
shot taken at Majjistral park, North west of Malta.