The Consolato del Mare di Malta collection helps us understand the evolution of local commercial trade and maritime customs, says Fiona Vella.

Among its various significant documents, the National Archives of Malta house the records of the Consolato del Mare di Malta within the premises of the Banca Giuratale in Mdina. This collection holds the first records of Malta’s own maritime tribunal and sheds light over more than 100 years of maritime law from late 17th century and the early 19th century.

Consisting of 473 items, the documentation of the Consolato del Mare di Malta is presently found in a stable condition. However it requires attention since present storage conditions do not guarantee its future preservation.

While highlighting the huge importance which this collection has to the better understanding of both local and international maritime law, maritime historian Joan Abela recently appealed for the preservation of this collection for posterity. Following Abela’s appeal, a group of individuals who are connected to the Maltese maritime industry have joined forces in order to come up with an initiative to collect the required funds for this project.

From left: National Archives CEO Charles Farrugia, maritime historian Dr Joan Abela and archivist Noel D’Anastas.From left: National Archives CEO Charles Farrugia, maritime historian Dr Joan Abela and archivist Noel D’Anastas.

“The proper preservation of our archives is our main focus,” says national archivist and National Archives CEO Charles Farrugia. “After consulting with our conservators, we concluded that using the current resources, it would take us about 80 weeks to complete the first phase of preservation of the documents of the Consolato del Mare di Malta. The cost would add up to approximately €25,000.” This initial work will involve the removal of acidic wrappers from the bundles of documents, cleaning of the bundles, the provision of new conservation grade covers and a condition assessment. Moreover, this collection will be stored in archival quality boxes that will serve for better protection and storage.

Archivist Noel D’Anastas commends this project.

“At the moment, we have 52 metres of shelving dedicated to the Consolato del Mare di Malta collection,” he says. “Although a good part of these documents are in good condition, some of the bundles require urgent attention. We need to preserve them as soon as possible, particularly since this material is very much in demand by researchers.”

The commercial court of the Consolato del Mare di Malta was established in 1697 and its main aim was to coordinate local maritime affairs and to tackle disputes and litigations in a more efficient way so as to facilitate trade. This arrangement was further enhanced by the appointment of experienced merchants in maritime trade in the positions of consuls for the tribunal of the Consolato.

“During the period of the Order of St John, corsairing became one of Malta’s major commercial activities. However, by the end of the 17th century, the political and economic situation in Malta had evolved into stronger commercial enterprises, thereby lessening the importance of the corso,” Dr Abela explains.

“From 1721 to 1723, the corso employed around 700 men whereas around 3,000 men were engaged with the merchant fleet. Therefore the need for a new regulatory system must be observed in this wider context of change from a crusading order to a trading order.”

Until then, Maltese shipping had been administered by the Consolato del Mare laws of Messina and Barcelona. Yet this development created the requirement of a legal framework to guide merchants and seafarers in their dealings with other traders and sellers.

In order to cater for this demand, Grand Master Ramon Perellos y Roccaful entrusted Fra Gaspare Carneiro with the task of studying the Consolato del Mare of various countries and particularly those which were used in Messina, Barcelona and Valencia. Thereafter, Carneiro was expected to compile and formulate the regulations for a Maltese Consolato law.

“From the documents that are held today, we can see that this maritime tribunal functioned for many years. In fact, this form of regulation continued to serve this sector until 1814, when the British eventually replaced it with the Corte di Commercio,” D’Anastas says.

Part of the Consolato del Mare di Malta collection.Part of the Consolato del Mare di Malta collection.

Asked about the relevance of this collection today, all three agree that the study of such documents could enable researchers to understand the evolution of our local commercial trade within the broader Mediterranean context.

“Since law and custom were highly connected, such documentation could also reveal a number of local maritime customs. Furthermore, this collection could divulge interesting details regarding the economic and social aspect of past societies and how law and business functioned,” Abela says.

“Indeed this collection of the Consolato del Mare di Malta provides a snapshot of various business practices such as the chartering of vessels, sailors’ wages, contracts of commenda or trade agreements made by captains, sailors or merchants, cases involving insurance, freight and trade networks, navigation techniques and other valuable information,” D’Anastas says. “Therefore, its relevance for research applies to different areas of study.”

They all agree about the benefit of preserving such documents which highlight how a particular system continued to function and evolve over such a long period of time.

“History is the foundation on which we build our present and future. A country which does not take adequate care of its archives tends to forget,” Abela says. “I believe that this collection should be regarded as a treasure of worldwide significance since its records can explain in detail how people from various countries managed to operate a system which helped them work and collaborate together.”

“There is no boundary to how much one can expand in the research of such documentation,” Mr Farrugia says. “Likewise, there is no limit to the preservation and conservation that one can apply to such a collection in order to protect it and make it available to future generations. Hopefully, one day, we will be able to digitalise this information so that this knowledge could be more easily shared on a wider scale.”

• To make a donation for the preservation of the documents of the Consolato del Mare di Malta, send an e-mail at

jes@sullivanshipping.com.mt, bsultanasully@gmail.com, apmamo@gasanmamo.com, rpmiller@tugmalta.com or call on 2229 6165.

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