Three years of restoration work on Torri L-Abjad (the White Tower) in Marfa were formally completed with a reopening ceremony on Wednesday.

The watchtower was built in 1658 by the Knights of St John, along with 12 others dotting the coastline.

The newly restored tower will be open to the public for educational purposes.

Part of the tower will offer dormitory facilities for groups while another section features information on the cultural heritage of the area.

The tower also includes a marine education centre for children.

The restoration works were handled by Din l-Art Ħelwa, whose head of restoration, Stanley Farrugia Randon, said the structure was in a state of disrepair.

“The first thing we had to do was to dismantle the illegal structures attached to it, and we had to do so without access to electricity, which wasn’t easy,” he said.

He detailed the rich history of the building, which was built by Grandmaster de Redin.

For a time, while Malta was under British rule, the tower was also used by the British forces.

“In 1918 they decided to use the place as a hydrophone station, installing devices to detect any enemy submarines approaching Malta.”

“While we were excavating we found the cables related to this hydrophone station school,” he said.

After the British left, the building fell into disrepair and a number of illegal structures were added to it.

The CEO of Din L-Art Ħelwa, Alex Torpiano said the restoration of several heritage sites was continuing. 

“Heritage is what we’ve received as a legacy and what we should strive to leave it in a better state,” he said.

The project was funded by HSBC.