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The area |

The sense of remoteness that pervades Ta' Cenc has two aspects. The first has to do with a feeling of physical and emotional detachment from the world that surrounds it. This is in part a visual effect derived from position and land form. Interestingly this sense is not produced by closing the view, but rather by opening it to the horizon on all sides.

The site is set off from the rest of the island by the valley of Mgarr ix Xini. Equally important is the subtle rise towards the western boundary, which creates a horizon, shutting off the view of the settlement immediately to the west. The distant views across the valley to the town of Xewkija and across the channel to Malta give the sense that one is in a place removed from the world around it. The sense of remoteness is particularly associated with the area of the plateau and the promontory of Ras in Newwiela, which is entirely cut off offering views only of the imposing cliffs and the open sea.

The second aspect of remoteness of the place is a sense of timelessness, which is almost palpable. Here it seems that time is measured differently from elsewhere, be the changes of the wind, the motion of the sun and the lives of the plants that cling to the surface of the rock. Nor is there a straightforward way to identify its place in history. With the exception of the hotel, and the villas, all the anthropic signs - fields and terrace walls, ruins, hides and cart ruts - are relatively subtle and ambiguous. The age, provenance and function of these forms is virtually impossible to ascertain.