Danger posed by chapel's bronze bells to be removed

Three bronze bells dangling dangerously from the deteriorating belfry of a 300-year-old chapel in St Julians will soon be removed after the government stepped in to help.

The chapel, dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, requires urgent restoration works, especially to the belfry. One of its bells came dislodged last weekend when the rusty iron beam holding it fell off its supports. Residents temporarily secured it in place with a nylon rope.

A closer look at the belfry reveals further problems, with the second of three bells looking like it is about to fall off too.

An attempt by the Resources Ministry to remove the danger started yesterday but the operation proved difficult because of the rain. Efforts will resume next week.

A spokesman said that although the chapel was not government property, the ministry was offering assistance to remove the bells in order to eliminate any possible danger.

The Restoration Unit was working on two three-year jobs at Castille and the Presidential Palace and concluding work on the National Library, so it could not start work on the chapel immediately.

He said it was not a question of funding, adding that the money for restoration jobs in 2010 had already been taken up.

The chapel was built by Cavalier Rafel Spinola in 1687, who also owned Spinola Palace and the land around the chapel. In 1914, the façade was pulled down and the chapel extended. The bronze bells were manufactured by Giuliano Cauchi in Conspicua in 1873.

The chapel is used on weekdays for evening Mass and also for weddings.

Since 2007, a number of architects have declared the building as being in a bad state of repair. One particular architect, who inspected the chapel in July that year, drew attention to the fact that the belfry was in a "badly deteriorated condition" and that it was at an "advanced risk of collapse".

The architect recommended "immediate action" for a full restoration and suggested tubular steel pipe work be used "to provide additional support to the weak belfry".

St Julians parish priest Fr Claude Portelli said he was happy that, finally, things got moving to save this historic monument in the locality although it was a "pity" it had to be through The Times that people recognised the importance of the chapel. He hoped promises would be kept.

When contacted, St Julians mayor Peter Bonello said the council had never received any written request for assistance to restore the chapel.

Although the council did not have the money to carry out the work, he said he was prepared to help the parish priest and parishioners to tap funds, even from the EU, to restore the chapel and the entrance to Spinola Palace.