Every time we come across old photos of the Maltese Islands we're amazed by how much our tiny islands have changed. In a recent post on their Facebook page, Friends of the Victoria Lines Trail shared striking photos comparing Mtarfa from way back when, to the locality nowadays.

Back in the day

The page reveals that this image was taken some time during the 1890s and shows the Mtarfa barracks from a distance. You can clearly see the prominence of the barracks, which were initially constructed to house the troops guarding what was then the North West Front. This later became part of the Victoria Lines.

Mtarfa now

In comparison, this photo (taken earlier this year) shows Mtarfa today, and it seems like the barracks have all but vanished. Not to worry, they’re still there - just hidden behind new buildings as the area was developed over time, which has resulted in Mtarfa being quite the fair-sized town with its own Local Council.

Something that is visible in both photos is the town’s clocktower. In the first photo, it is quite visible, but in the second it is covered by scaffolding as it is currently undergoing restoration works. The clocktower was part of the British military changes made to the town, which included the building of a hospital (now a school) and the barracks (now housing estates).

Another prominent difference is the ring road built to connect the arterial road of Triq il-Kav Vincenza Bonello to Nigret in the outskirts of Rabat. Back in the 1890s, this didn’t exist, since cars weren’t so abundant.

Stunning, right?