Uncovered pictures from the past reveal a wonderful time of early photography recorded by Richard Matrenza that show the antics of his fun-loving grandfather

In the toddler years of the 20th century, photography was just about crawling out of its infancy.

Kodak had not as yet thought of revolutionising this art and making it a great social leveller with the birth and popularising feature of its Brownie box camera. A milestone. A fantastic innovator. This came later.

For young men about town in Malta at that time, going to a photo studio was an event not to be missed.

An opportunity to create the spirit of carnival out of turn. An opportunity for fun designed for men only before pre-nuptials activities.

And since these activities kept the sexes apart, the priest-controlled island of Malta did not unduly worry the local Curia. My father’s father Nannu Riccardo passed away three years before I was born.

His demise sparked my father to take a wife, thus assuming that aura of respectabilty so necessary in the culture of the 1930s to run the family business.

He tied the knot about 28 months after my grandfather had been laid to rest.

It was his duty and his role as the only male heir. And automatically anointed as the breadwinner of the family.

The mores of Maltese society a mere 80 years ago demanded this.

Luckily for me our family love to hoard. That is why the accompanying historical photos have not been lost. They show my grandfather and his fun friends.