La Valette’s hat, which is part of the heritage collection at Vittoriosa Church’s museum, has been restored by the Cottonera Rehabilitation Project within the Resources and Infrastructure Ministry.

It was restored by the Malta Centre for Restoration which now forms part of Heritage Malta. Dr Ray Bondin, CRP’s executive coordinator, and Vittoriosa Archpriest Joseph Caruana unveiled the restored hat.

The Archpriest spoke about the heritage of the Church in Vittoriosa and the fact that the museum is run by volunteers. Dr Bondin spoke about the significance of this small but very important project. Part of the project consisted of carbon dating the original part of the hat at the University of Lecce, which confirmed that the hat belonged to the period of La Valette.

This confirms the long-standing tradition that Grand Master La Valette personally donated the hat and a sword to the people of Vittoriosa. Dr Bondin also spoke about other restoration projects including that of the statue of St Lawrence, which will be ready in time for the feast, and at the Armoury.