64
ViGiLO - Din l-Art Ħelwa
ISSUE 54 • NOVEMBER 2020
Help us save our heritage
Din l-Art Ħelwa is continuously involved in restoration works. This includes maintenance of existing properties managed by Din l-Art Ħelwa as well as new properties entrusted to the organisation. The restoration committee is led by Dr Stanley Farrugia Randon, together with Maria Grazia Cassar and Josie Ellul Mercer.
RESTORATION REPORT
We rely on funding and support from sponsors to be able to carry out this important part of our organisation’s mission.
O
ver the last months, restoration works neared completion at Delimara Lighthouse. Din l-Art Ħelwa received funds from the Gal Xlokk Foundation to restore the turret. The clockwork mechanism, including the turntable and the pear-shaped paraffin tank that once fuelled the three wicks which lit the lantern, also require cleaning and treating with protective lacquer. Din l-Art Ħelwa is still seeking funding to restore these elements. Ħal Millieri chapel with its medieval frescoes is one of the most important gems entrusted to Din l-Art Ħelwa. It requires regular restoration and maintenance. The recently changed metal gate and cover to the well have weathered beautifully and will now be painted. During a recent storm, part of the rubble wall adjacent to the pathway leading to the chapel collapsed and was rebuilt. The restoration of the White Tower (l-Aħrax) is underway thanks to EU funds obtained by the Malta Tourism Authority. Part of the ditch wall collapsed, mainly due to erosion of the underlying rock as well the roots of trees planted inappropriately close to it. Part of the funds were allotted to the resurfacing of the concrete flooring around the tower, especially where the illegal buildings once stood on the western side. Once these were removed, the irregular floor was replaced with a smoother floor more safe to walk on. Other external works included the laying of new drains towards the cesspit and the laying of services towards the room in the ditch. We hope that these works will be completed by the end of the year. The restoration of the Red Tower has been completed (see pp. 50-51 of this issue).
Stanley Farrugia Randon says: “I used to think that St Agatha’s Tower was called the ‘Red Tower’ because the stone from which it was built has a red coloration or because it was painted red to make it more visible and scare away any invading Ottoman pirates. However in November 2019 Pascal Brun, the assistant mayor of Castellar which was the birthplace of Grand Master Jean Paul Lascaris de Castellar, donated a Castellar Flag which has a red tower as its emblem! It could well be that this colour was a symbol of the family.”
