Precious Calì works under attack

It is a struggle against time and the elements for a set of Giuseppe Calì frescoes at the Porto Salvo and St Dominic parish church in Valletta.

Calì's oil on stone works painted in the 1890s have been considerably damaged by water seeping in through the walls and the ceiling, and conservation works are poised to start.

Salts carried by the water have seeped through the stone and, when the water evaporated, the salts crystallised between the paint layer and the masonry. This created pressure and consequently caused the paint to flake off.

Conservator Fr Charles Vella warned: "If water is going to keep on coming in, more damage is going to be done. Time is the main problem, and as time goes by we can go back to the church in a month's time and find another five pieces missing."

Pierre Bugeja, who is involved in the project, said the aim of restoration was to first try and ensure nothing was lost; following that, salts would be removed and the painting would eventually be restored to its former state - it's a complex process, he explained.

Fr Vella said it was a huge emergency which had to be addressed this year.

However, since funds are not forthcoming, the first step towards restoration, which is to repair the dome, has still not been taken.

A fund has been set up to collect money for the restoration of these precious paintings.

Fondazzjoni Porto Salvo u San Duminku secretary Alfred Grixti said they had appealed to "corporate donors with a budget for heritage to help out this parish in a poor neighbourhood".

Fr Henry Abela OP, the prior of the convent, appealed to everyone to help in any way they could, especially those who counted the parish as their spiritual home.

"So far, all the doors we've knocked on have remained closed," Mr Grixti said.

The foundation is hoping the Prime Minister's visit to the basilica today, to inaugurate the table of the Last Supper, will attract attention to this problem.

Whoever wishes to donate is encouraged to write to The Chairman, Fondazzjoni Porto Salvo u San Duminku - Valletta, Dominican Convent, St Dominic Street, Valletta VLT 1603.