Last Sunday the Malta Council for Culture and the Arts compiled a tour that got me thinking about the relationship between conservation of our historical heritage and big commercial ventures.
Fort Manoel has been beautifully restored but we have not yet paid the devil's dues. The conservation work on the fort is complete but Midi have not yet started on the development that will fund the investment.
Most people in Malta now feel saddened when they look at the overdevelopment of Tigne Point which dominates the peninsula and pushes the fort into insignificance. I hope that the development of Manoel Island will be more restrained and will leave the green surrounds of the fort so that its dramatic symmetry will still be readable.
The conservation work has not attempted to recreate the original. Where new work has been needed to enable the shape of the past to emerge, the conservators have not attempted to pretend that the new work is old. New work suggests the original intention but does not attempt to mimic intricate patterning.
The photos are of the ditch, the walls, the arsenal and the chapel. The enormous square at the centre of the fort has been used as an outdoor concert venue in the past and it is probable that the surrounds will become tourist venues. In the meantime, we enjoyed Sunday morning with the fort to ourselves.
