The museum was inaugurated by National Trust of England, Wales and Northern Ireland director-general Fiona Reynolds, who is currently visiting Malta, in the presence of Tourism and Culture Minister Francis Zammit Dimech and Din l-Art Helwa president Martin Scicluna.

The project for the restoration and rehabilitation of the Garden of Repose, which overlooks Marsamxetto Creek, took 10 years of work by volunteers and today its maintenance is an ongoing project for Din L-Art Helwa.

In 2001 it was awarded the Europa Nostra Silver Medal for its rehabilitation into a public garden, with its historic dignity restored and its artistic neo-classical monuments preserved for generations. The project leader for the restoration of this site and for the establishment of a museum annexed to the garden is historian Dr Alexander Welsh.

The museum is dedicated to the long history of burials, burial places and practices in Malta as well as to the contents of the Msida Bastion Garden of Repose itself. Colourful and comprehensive information panels created by Din l-Art Helwa depict the chronology of this long history which begins with the first settlers in Malta in

prehistory.

Mention is made of burial places created for religious denominations such as the Jewish cemeteries in Kalkara and behind Ta’ Braxia, the Muslim and Turkish cemeteries and the special spaces created for victims of the two World Wars in the War Graves cemeteries. The information panels bring Malta’s burial history up to date with images of today’s village cemeteries and the Addolorata Cemetery.

The museum also dedicates display cabinets to themes from the Msida Bastion Garden, notably to the research work carried out in recent years that has shed light on the important personalities buried in the Garden of Repose.

The museum and the garden, with its breathtaking views, offer the visitor a rare moment of tranquillity and reflection. They are now open to the public and admission is 50 cents with all proceeds dedicated to the ongoing maintenance of the garden and its monuments.

In a short speech, Dr Zammit Dimech said such initiatives added to Malta’s 7,000 years of history for tourists and locals to admire. He spoke at some length about Malta’s past and how Malta’s burial heritage is intrinsically woven into the country’s history.