Fifteen priceless 18th century silver statues are being restored by Sante Guido Restauro e Conservazione Opere d'Art.

The exquisite works of art, dating back to 1741 and 1743 and made by Roman silversmith Antonio Arrighi, are housed at the cathedral in Mdina.

The statues, showing the apostles, John the Baptist, St Paul and Our Lady, were commissioned by the Order of St John for the main altar of the St John's conventual church in Valletta.

The first group of 10 statues was finished in 1741, the second in 1743. They are about 110 centimetres high.

Chief restorer Giuseppe Mantella said photographic and graphic documentation was undertaken before the conservation process was started. Scientific analysis was made to determine the type of materials used.

The silver surfaces were cleaned of candlewax and old protective coatings while corroded parts were removed.

New silver and gilded bronze screws were manufactured to replace missing, modern or broken ones. The internal wooden parts were cleaned of woodworm. Fresh wooden parts replaced broken or missing ones.

As soon as a statue was cleaned and restored, a protective coating was applied to delay oxidisation.

The restoration work started in April and 12 of the statues are now fully restored. The restoration of the other three will be completed by June 29.

It is perhaps through good negotiation skills that these artefacts still form part of the local heritage. During their brief stay on the island between 1798 and 1800, the French cleared out several churches of their silverware to mint coins to pay salaries to their troops.

In 1798, when the statues were still at St John's conventual church, Canon Salvatore Susano informed the Cathedral Chapter about them and said it would be a great loss if they were to be melted down with the rest of the silver confiscated from that church by the French.

He proposed that, in exchange, the Mdina Cathedral gives the French silver and gold articles belonging to the Cathedral equivalent in value to the statues.

The French agreed to this proposal and, on June 22, 1798, two government officials accompanied an armed guard to the cathedral to bring to Valletta six sealed chests containing gold and silver objects in lieu of the statues.

The statues, however, had to be redeemed a second time in August 1799, when 449 pounds of silver articles, valued at 11,563 scudi, were handed over to the French instead of the statues.

The restoration is being funded by the Vodafone Malta Foundation (VMF) and HSBC Cares for Malta's Heritage Fund.

VMF chairman Gemma Mifsud Bonnici said the foundation was proud to contribute towards such a precious work of art that is part of Malta's heritage.

"This presentation is in line with the foundation's mission statement of contributing towards the community in which Vodafone operates," she said.

HSBC Cares for Malta's Heritage Fund director Maurice DeGiorgio said the restoration and preservation of precious artefacts gave the bank great satisfaction.

"Our commitment to this cause is spurred by the knowledge that we are salvaging Maltese heritage, as well as our collective memory, for generations to come," he said.

The Mdina Restoration Committee is also involved.

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