Access to Mdina is through three gates: the City Gate, the Greek Gate and the New City Gate, created in the 20th century by locals to shorten the journey to the bus station in Rabat, a suburb of Mdina.
The Greek Gate was used only by slaves in the Middle Ages. Nowadays, cars of locals pass through them. All tourists enter Mdina through the City Gate, also called the Main Gate or Vilena Gate. It was built in the Baroque style in 1724 by the Frenchman Charles François de Mondion, the chief architect of Mdina, who worked on many palaces in the city. The construction was sponsored by the Grand Master Antoine Manuel de Villena. We can see his coat of arms on the outer façade of the gate. This gate appeared on the site of a medieval structure with a lift bridge. Because of the construction of the residence for Vilena, the entrance gate had to be moved to the left by several metres. This interference in the city's fortification system forced the architect to modify the medieval fortifications adjacent to the gate. The ancient Turri Mastra tower was replaced by the Torre dela Standardo. The Mdina Main Gate is depicted on a commemorative silver coin of 2 Maltese lire minted in 1973. It can also be seen together with the neighbouring Torre dela Standardo on the 5 Maltese Lira banknote in circulation between 1989 and 2007.
In 2008, the gate was repaired by a division of the Department of Maintenance Roads. The City Gate is now one of the main tourist attractions in Mdina. Attentive viewers who have watched the TV series Game of Thrones will recognise this gate in the third episode of the first season, where it is featured as part of Lord Snow's castle.
