The splendid Palazzo Falson, which is one of the oldest surviving homes in Malta, built in the 13th century, has a dazzling and extensive private collection on display, including furniture, watches, silver, jewellery, oriental rugs, paintings, armoury and books.
The Palazzo is named after its 16th century owner Vice Admiral Michele Falsone, although the amazing collection was brought together by researcher, philanthropist and artist Captain Olof Gollcher (1889-1962), who bought the Palazzo in 1927.
After your visit, be sure to have a break at the palazzo’s splendid rooftop café, which commands a panoramic view of Malta, the open sea and the prominent dome of the nearby Mdina Cathedral.
References:Goryōkaku (五稜郭) (literally, 'five-point fort') is a star fort in the Japanese city of Hakodate on the island of Hokkaido. The fortress was completed in 1866. It was the main fortress of the short-lived Republic of Ezo.
Goryōkaku was designed in 1855 by Takeda Ayasaburō and Jules Brunet. Their plans was based on the work of the French architect Vauban. The fortress was completed in 1866, two years before the collapse of the Tokugawa Shogunate. It is shaped like a five-pointed star. This allowed for greater numbers of gun emplacements on its walls than a traditional Japanese fortress, and reduced the number of blind spots where a cannon could not fire.
The fort was built by the Tokugawa shogunate to protect the Tsugaru Strait against a possible invasion by the Meiji government.
Goryōkaku is famous as the site of the last battle of the Boshin War.