Treasures of Malta 

No. 89, Easter 2024, Vol. 30 No. 2

published by Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti

A close-up of a delicately embroidered stomacher on the cover of the latest issue of Treasures of Malta not only invites us to open this chest of treasures but also serves to announce the costume exhibition that will grace Palazzo Falson all the way to June, another significant FPM exhibition. The curators Caroline Tonna and Francesca Balzan give more details in the inside pages.

The editorial also serves the imminent publication of the first volume of a new series of Histories of Malta by Giovanni Bonello which is bound to be another top seller. Also in the pipeline for later this year is a volume of cinematography in Malta by Charlie Cauchi.

Carmen Depasquale writes about the French man of letters Prosper Mérimée’s two visits to Malta, although his last visit consisted of 14 days as a ‘guest’ of the lazaretto. Strangely enough, this must have been quite a pleasant experience since his travelling companion later wrote of having lived ‘a life of luxury’ there.

Prosper Merimee’s drawing of The Beheading of St John.

His first visit some months earlier lasted a couple of days where the peak of his interest were the ‘Phoenician’ temples at Ħaġar Qim which had been discovered a couple of years earlier. Not a mean artist Mérimée also made a very good copy of Caravaggio’s Beheading which he was later to describe to a friend as the only thing worth visiting in Valletta… except for the fleas.

In actual fact, the earliest known set of photographs of Ħaġar Qim date back to 1861, a decade after Mérimée’s visit. Commissioned by a Manchester antiquarian, these 23 albumen prints, taken by an as yet unidentified photographer, are a unique archaeological record and clearly show the disastrous deterioration suffered by the decorations in the soft limestone prior to the erection of the protective tent. Anton Bugeja writes about these unique views and gives details about their present whereabouts.

The extensive restoration processes of the steeple of St Paul’s Anglican pro-cathedral and the resultant discoveries are the subject of a contribution of Charlene Jo Darmanin, Guillaume Dreyfuss, Charles Sciberras, Elena Zammit, Nigel Degaetano, Elena Bajada, and Konrad Buhagiar.

Ħaġar Qim photographed in 1841 showing the pitted decorations.

The decorations have now eroded away.

Research has now shown that the iconic steeple, up to a few years ago the tallest building in the islands, was actually designed by William Scamp who took over the project after Richard Lanksheer’s death. Its construction made use of traditional local construction techniques but included various innovative interventions, not least the use of iron cramps, some of which embedded in the stone blocks. The damage caused by the rusting of these supports proved a particular challenge to the restoration of this unique structure in a Maltese context.

The beautiful ceiling fresco in the refectory at the archbishop’s curia is signed by a mysterious and elusive ‘Leonetti P.’. Mark Sammut Sassi undertakes an indefatigable search to identify the person and ends up with a very possible identification.

The death of Francis Ebejer 30 years ago was a most significant loss for Maltese theatre

The death of Francis Ebejer 30 years ago was a most significant loss for Maltese theatre. Paul Xuereb calls Ebejer ‘the father of Maltese drama’, the one who lifted Maltese theatre above tejatrin and melodrama level. His groundbreaking plays introduced an intellectual dimension which paved the ways for a handful of younger playwrights. A personal friend of Ebejer’s and an actor in some of his plays, Xuereb gives brief critical analyses of his major plays, while also making reference to the playwright’s unhappy life experiences.

Francis Ebejer with his son Damien

Only those bitten by collectors’ bugs can understand Paul Vella’s obsession with photographic cameras. For over 50 years, he has been collecting, researching and restoring cameras to keep them in working condition.

At the moment, he has got over 2,400 cameras which he tends with loving care in the garage adjacent to his Żejtun house. His oldest camera is a French field camera dating to c.1880. In the first of two contributions, Kevin Casha, himself one of our leading photographers, gives the story behind Vella’s life-long passion which will be concluded in the next issue.

Ironically Klaus Vella Bardon’s favourite object is not in his possession. It consists of a number of lectures in Italian on obstetrics given by Francesco Buttigieg in 1804 and transcribed by one of his forebears, Salvatore Bardon, who went on to graduate as a medical doctor. Vella Bardon selflessly donated these unique documents to the National Archives. The author lovingly describes the extensive restoration processes carried out on the lectures and the notable results achieved.

Cameras everywhere. Paul Vella’s collection.

Toni Sant writes about the Sala dei Cavalieri in Palazzo de la Salle which has undergone extensive changes since the De la Salle brothers roofed over the original terrace in 1732. Today the hall is more of a celebration of Malta’s real or imagined past following its extensive decorations by the baroque-inspired interventions by Domenico Micallef (1906-33).

Giuseppe Briffa (1901–87) is best known as an ecclesiastical painter where his art was, however, necessarily limited by strict tradition. In Rome, in the 1920s, he had studied both sacred art and the nude. It was in this latter genre that Briffa could give free rein to his creative flair, mainly expressed in small studies today mostly found in private collections and MUŻA’s reserve collection. Nadette Xuereb analyses this often-overlooked aspect of Birkirkara-born Briffa’s work.

In addition to a review of The Confraternity of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and the Brown Scapular by Mark Agius. This issue also includes the regular cultural review by Cecilia Xuereb.