Once used as a weapon, the mace came to symbolise royal, ecclesiastical and academic power. There is only documented evidence that the University of Malta had a mace in the 1700s. Last year, the outgoing rector proposed the reinstatement of a mace, which was inaugurated at the installation ceremony for the new rector.

Master silversmith Adrian Gauci chiselling one of the intricate pieces on top of the emblem.

Eight kilograms of sterling silver and three people working 15-hour days for 12 weeks is what it took for the University of Malta’s new mace to come into existence.

And before that, endless weeks were spent in design work and finalising the moulds.

Anthony Mangion, the university’s former director of library services, explains that the university’s ceremonial mace, commissioned this year, symbolises the legal authority of the institution as a seat and custodian of higher learning, including its right to grant academic degrees.

Maces have existed since prehistoric times, although they gained prestige in the Middle Ages, when the reigning monarch would be surrounded by soldiers carrying war maces, ready to deliver powerful blows if needed.

By the mid-13th century, maces were no longer required as weapons and began to suggest a symbolic sense of power and authority.

This meant that they could start being carried by other entities, including parliaments, law courtsand universities.

The only maces in Malta are those which belong to collegiate churches that have a chapter of canons, eight of which are in Malta and five in Gozo. The University of Malta was known to have a mace, but this has never been traced, except for documented references attesting to its existence and use in the 1700s.

The mace constitutes a link with the institution’s past

In 2015, outgoing rector Juanito Camilleri proposed the reinstatement of a mace as a way for the university to reintroduce a privilege which had been granted to it on its foundation.

Mr Gauci hammering the face of the mace.

Whereas in the past, the university’s chief beadle would carry the mace during official ceremonies, nowadays the rector can appoint any person as mace bearer, whether male or female.

While more recent versions of maces have been produced in wood or other metals, all ceremonial maces in Malta, as well as those belonging to the older universities worldwide, are made of silver, symbolising prestige.

The mace also constitutes a link with the institution’s past, symbolising a continuity of tradition in maintaining high academic standards, Mr Mangion said.

“The closed crown finial of our university’s ceremonial mace, together with the Order’s cross, indicates its institution by sovereign prince Grand Master Emmanuel Pinto. The Latin inscriptions identify the four escutcheons on the head, namely the coat-of-arms of the university as granted by the Royal College of Heralds in 1923, the university’s co-founders, Grand Master Pinto and Pope Clement XIV, and the institution’s predecessor, the Jesuits’ College of 1592, thus summing up the history of the institution.”

The square-shaped head articulated by delicately designed scroll motifs, foliated ornamental work and central oval escutcheons bearing coats of arms.

The new mace was designed by artist Jeremy Cachia of Żurrieq, who produced full-scale drawings of its various components. Sculptor Clive Busuttil of Vittoriosa then fashioned all the moulds which Laga silversmiths used to manufacture the actual mace.

The process of making it was certainly painstaking, as the managing director of Laga Co. Ltd, Alex Coster, explained.

“First of all, the master silversmith has to craft his own chisels. These cannot be bought and while some may be reused, such a complex design as the mace’s required bespoke tools,” he said. “Handcrafting such an ornate artefact also involves several techniques, such as chasing the decorative work and punching the desired pattern. The material can also be pushed into raised patterns from the back, a technique known as repousse, while matting is when you punch patterns to create contrast and shading.”

Mr Coster explained that it is imperative that those working on it are dedicated and have a wealth of experience as a misplaced punch could mean having to melt down the material and start all over again.

The university’s ceremonial mace was handcrafted by master silversmith Adrian Gauci, who started his career with Laga as an apprentice 25 years ago at the tender age of 16, assisted by two others.

The mace is 1.36m long and weighs 8kg.

Handcrafting such an ornate artefact involves several techniques

Laga was founded in 1978 by an engineer and a metallurgist. Back then, it focused on the recovery and refinement of noble metals from auriferous (gold) and argentiferous (silver) sweeps, to the delight of local goldsmiths, who until then sent their wares to laboratories overseas.

Mr Gauci soldering parts of the mace together.

The company eventually expanded its operations by branching into the production of silverware, primarily tableware and giftware, as well as other commissions.

Mr Coster said his company is nowadays primarily commissioned to craft ecclesiastical artefacts, although  they have received the occasional request for domestic and corporate items. This was, however, the first time they were commissioned to make a mace.

Past commissions include a framed bas relief of Caravaggio’s The Beheading of St John presented to Pope Benedict XVI by the then Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi during a state visit to the Vatican City.

Mr Coster explained that silversmithing was traditionally passed down from father to son or master to apprentice. Nowadays, however, it is taught by both the Malta College of Art, Science and Technology (Mcast) and the School of Arts. In his experience thus far, he has never come across a female crafter.

He defines tradition as being the major challenge that his company faces.

“It is the cornerstone of our company and something we have always been committed to upholding. Yet elsewhere, the profession has regrettably fallen for modernisation. Mechanics may have lowered prices and can create what physiology cannot. But where is the prestige in that, and how can you call its results traditional?”

The University of Malta’s new mace was inaugurated on the occasion of the installation ceremony of the new rector Alfred Vella on June 30 this year, but will continue to feature during such formal events as the annual inauguration of the academic year, the granting of doctoral and honoris causa degrees, and any other special occasions.

The top of the mace’s head showing the Maltese Cross finial and Grand Master Pinto’s closed crown.