Heritage Malta officers were brought in on Friday morning to clean a blue stain on the façade of the Grandmaster’s Palace in Valletta.

A spokesperson for Heritage Malta confirmed that its employees started the day with cleaning work on the façade after it was damaged on Thursday night.

Preliminary investigations showed that coloured gases, probably from a flare, penetrated the pores of the stone. The stain cannot be removed with a simple cleaning operation but will require extensive restoration and conservation work.

Sources said the police were on site when the flare was used during an event organised by the Nationalist Party in St George’s Square, and the matter is being investigated.

Heritage Malta completed the first phase of restoration works at the Grandmaster’s Palace a few weeks ago. The restoration project is believed to be one of the most ambitious ever embarked on by Heritage Malta.

The Grandmaster’s Palace was Heritage Malta’s most visited site prior to its closure for restoration purposes.

For more than 400 years, during which Malta was under foreign rule before becoming a sovereign state, the palace witnessed the decisions that shaped our nation’s history.

Adorned with fine arts and beautiful architectural features, the palace also houses a unique armoury. Above all else, it embodies a nation’s journey through the course of recent history.

The Heritage Malta spokesperson appealed to the public to appreciate and safeguard the country’s heritage.