11 Some Highlights From Our Diary

In spite of the challenges presented by COVID 19, we kept going on with our work at the National Archives during 2020. These are some of our activities during this challenging year; this choice is intended to give an indication of various aspects of our lives and activities.

We had a very productive meeting with the staff of the Maltese Archiespiscpoal Archives. We are committed to support and collaborate with all archives in Malta.

We were pleased to host Inner Wheel Malta (Malta) at the National Archives. Beside discussing the work that we carry out, we had the opportunity to talk about records that highlight the role of women in our Collective Memory.

The 3/11 Regiment RMA (T) Association donated various records pertaining to their organisation to the National Archival collection.

1966. Prime Minister Giorgio Borg Olivier vsiting a 3/11 Regiment RMA (T) summer cap at Għajn Tuffieħa. These photos are included in the collection of records donated by the 3/11 Regiment RMA (T) Association to the National Archives.

Once more Tony Terribile enriched our holdings by donating more records related to life in Malta during the last century.

18 students reading for an MA (Notarial Studies) during their weekly practical session at our Courts and Tribunals Section in Mdina under the guidance of lecturer Dr Joan Abela.

We evaluated our performance during 2019 and discussed our targets for 2020.

Public Memory, Oral History and the Audio-Visual: Theory and Practice. We organised this course, led by Prof John Chircop, to initiate participants in the current theoretical debates, fields of research, methodology and the multiple uses of oral history and audio-visual sources.

We participated in an Artistic Residency held in Madrid (Spain). Twelve graphic and industrial designers from Malta (Clint Tabone), Austria, Hungary, Norway, Portugal and Spain discussed prototypes of merchandising objects based on documents from archival holdings. This was an activity within European Digital Treasures, a project is co-funded by the European Union through the Creative Europe.

An interview was conducted with HE The President of Malta in connection with a record related his public life in the 1970s that he donated to the project Memorja of the National Archives.

We thanked our colleague Mario Gauci, the Chief Conservator at the National Archives, who started his retirement.

Frans Buttigieg started his retirement. We thanked him for his services as the maintenance person at the National Archives.

We particpated in the International Archives Awareness Week. Given the COVID 19 pandemic, the activities were carried out entirely online. This year’s theme was ‘Empowering Knowledge Societies’.

We transferred a number of rolled maps to another storage facility to make better use of the limited space available in Rabat. Our conservators prepared custom-made archival boxes to protect and preserve these maps.

As part of the campaign for the preservation of the memory of COVID-19 we asked people to share with us their last ‘normal’ photos and some photos of their life, together with a short description (context of photo, locality, persons, date, etc), during restrictive measures.

Mgr Joseph Bezzina, Assistant National Archivist and head of the Gozo Section retired. During these last 32 years, Mgr Bezzina was instrumental in the setting up of this section as well as in the development of both its holdings and its public profile.

The Ġuljana Letard Ciantar arrived at the National Archives. The conservation and preservation process of this great genealogical records collection was the first step; cataloguing and digitization will follow so that then these records may be accessible for research and study.

We started a support programme with the Salesian community in Senglea in their efforts to improve the conditions around the Oratorians’ Research Library to preserve it for present and future generations.

We thank John Ellis for donating records and photos belonging to his father Col. Edgar Ellis who was in charge of the Rediffusion in Malta during World War 2.

Our conservators are supporting the Siġġiewi parish’s efforts to manage better its archives by assisting in the drawing up of a condition status report.

We thank Grace Cilia Vincenti for donating the photo collection generated by Guido Stilon (1932-1975) to the National Archives. This collection, made up of around 6,000 black and white negatives and over 5,300 colour slides, is a unique portrait of a country emerging from the WW2 trauma.

During the Pubic Service Week we welcomed the Principal Permanent Secretary Mr Mario Cutajar at the National Archives. We discussed our work and thanked him for his support.

President of Malta George Vella visited the National Archives in Rabat. The President remarked: “This is a place where all items with a link to our country’s history, as chosen by experts, are kept. I am very happy to see that these great treasures are being professionally curated”.

Miriam Teuma, CEO of Aġenzija Żgħażagħ, and Isabelle Mallia, Manager of Community and Outreach Youth Work Services, deposited the written experiences of young people in Gozo as they dealt with the Covid-19 pandemic during its initial phase at the National Archives.

The National Archivist participated in a virtual meeting that replaced this year’s usual archivists’ meetings that were scheduled to be held in Berlin. The German Federal Archives presented the ‘Access to Archives Project’ by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA),

We’re determined to improve our services. Our staff participated in a customer care services training course as part of our continuous development programme

The National Archives of Malta participated in the Ask A Conservator Day being celebrated today. Our conservators answered questions related to paper and archival records conservation that were submitted on our Facebook page.

Frankie Cassar Mallia donated digital copies of items related to the British and Swedish royal families and their connection to Mary Bugeja, seller of Maltese lace and woven cloth in Rabat (Malta).

Raymond Fava and his family donated the photographic cllection of his father Karmenu. We thank also Dr Steve Borg who curated this collection made up of tens of thousands of of 35mm negatives, 2,730 photos, 3,365 slides, photographic equipment and the newspapers publishing Karmenu Fava’s photos.