Visitors passing through the new arrivals hall at the Malta International Airport can now immediately get a taste of Malta’s rich cultural heritage through a walkthrough exhibition outlining a few of the most important museums and visitors’ sites. Heritage Malta’s Corporate Communications manager Pierre Cassar talks to Sandra Aquilina about the exhibition’s significance

The arrivals hall at the Malta International Airport was strangely silent and empty as we walked through it. On either side of the wide corridor were scenes and representations of Malta’s rich cultural heritage: three large dioramas representing the Hal Saflieni hypogeum, the Grand Harbour and the Palace State Rooms – and, on the other side, six showcases with artefacts from Maltese museums. Tucked away in the corner, but drawing attention to itself through the lighting, was part of a model of a megalithic temple. Next to it were two timelines, outlining highlights in Malta’s past and the importance of the Maltese megalithic temples as indicated by a timeline of the world’s architectural heritage.

This, in fact, was the result of a joint venture between Heritage Malta, the national agency for museums, conservation practice and cultural heritage and Malta International Airport (MIA). Between them, the two entities created an exhibition aimed at giving newly-arrived visitors to Malta an idea of the islands’ rich cultural heritage and enticing them to visit the unique cultural and heritage sites.

“Malta International Airport was expanding the arrivals lounge at the airport in preparation for adherence to the Schengen Treaty by the first quarter of 2007,” explained Heritage Malta’s Corporate Communications manager Pierre Cassar. “As Heritage Malta, we were asked whether we were interested in being assigned certain spaces in the arrivals lounge and coming up with a presentation which would reflect an overview of Maltese history and culture. Of course, we immediately said yes. The arrivals hall at the airport is the first place where foreigners who arrive by air will get an impression of Malta and it was important that we should be represented here.”

So the exhibition, which was the result of a collaboration agreement between MIA and Heritage Malta, aims to give a brief overview of what Malta has to offer in the cultural field, explained Mr Cassar. “The project has a twofold purpose: the first is to promote Malta and its cultural heritage; the second is to ease the congestion at luggage pick-up, tempting visitors to linger in this area for a few minutes before collecting their luggage.”

The exhibition was set up with the assistance of Academy Award-nominated set designer Peter Howitt. “Mr Howitt was very keen on this project and he presented numerous designs as to what the exhibition area could look like when completed. He not only prepared the designs but monitored the project from start to finish in meticulous fashion.”

The idea was that the wide corridor which was assigned to Heritage Malta would have representations on both sides, forming a walk-through exhibition. So on one side, three large dioramas were constructed and three highlights in Maltese history were chosen as representations.

The central diorama shows a representation of the Hal Saflieni hypogeum. This, a UNESCO World Heritage site, was an obvious choice for one of the dioramas, said Mr Cassar. On one side of the hypogeum representation, there is a representation of the Grand Harbour, showing the fortifications and marina, reflecting Malta’s long and tumultuous maritime history.

The third diorama shows the Tapestry Chamber (Sala ta’ l-Arazzi) in the Palace State Rooms. “The Palace State Rooms attract close to 160,000 visitors per year,” said Mr Cassar. “This makes them second in line only to Ggantija Temples in terms of visitor numbers. When one takes into consideration that the Palace State Rooms are closed on Thursdays because of official Presidential activities, then one can appreciate how popular they are.”

Each diorama also includes a brief tagline and a quick explanation of the representation, giving hurried visitors an idea of what the diorama stands for.

Tucked in the corner, next to the dioramas, is a large model of part of Tarxien Temples, intended to give visitors an idea of Malta’s famous megalithic temples. “Unfortunately, many visitors who come to Malta still do not know about our megalithic temples; Stonehenge is at the top of the list in Great Britain, but many visitors to Malta still have not heard that we have several UNESCO World Heritage sites.”

The exhibition also includes two timelines – one of Maltese history and the other of World Architecture in stone. The first is intended to give a quick impression of the main highlights of Maltese history, starting from 2,500 BC till 2004 with EU accession. The second emphasises the importance of the megalithic temples, particularly Ggantija temples which, dating back to 2,600 BC, are the oldest freestanding structures in the world, pre-dating the pyramids by something like 1,000 years.

The six showcases on the other side present several artefact displays, promoting Malta’s leading museums. These also include brief taglines explaining the significance of the museums. The showcases include displays of the Fine Arts Museum as well as the Palace Armoury – which ranks as one of the finest in Europe. Another two showcases give an overview of the Roman domus, a site which was completely refurbished by Heritage Malta in 2005. These include the Phoenician cippus which, although it was not found at the domus, was included to give as comprehensive an overview as possible of all the cultures which dominated Malta. The panels also include a mention of the mosaics at the Roman domus, which are some of the finest in the Mediterranean.

A further panel focuses on Malta’s wartime experience, with a representation of the Maltese flag and a replica of the photo of the awarding of the George Cross. The tagline promotes the National War Museum in Valletta.

Heritage Malta sites in Gozo are also represented through the Ta’ Kola windmill. The artefacts in the showcase represent traditional way of life, also recalling the Folklore Museum at the heart of the citadel in Gozo.

The Maritime Museum in Vittoriosa is also represented through a model of the steam engine which is found at the museum and through another showcase which shows traditional objects, including the traditional luzzu boat used by fishermen and marines’ uniforms which provide a link to the British empire.

A promotional stand will also be set up shortly at one end of the exhibition, where leaflets and other information can be collected by visitors, explained Mr Cassar.

The displays in the showcases can be rotated every 18 months, he added, making sure that frequent travellers do not tire of the exhibition.

Asked whether it was planned to channel some more investment into a few of the sites displayed in the showcases – such as the Armoury and the War Museum – Mr Cassar said that Heritage Malta operates 21 sites which are open all year round with the exception of five days. In all, Heritage Malta has more than 30 sites under its care.

“We have a list of capital projects which are under way. It is difficult to pinpoint priorities, however, the megalithic structures – because they are open-air sites – are currently the focus of a lot of attention. It is in fact planned that the temples of Hagar Qim and Mnajdra will be protected with a tent and the building of a visitor centre. This project is expected to be completed by late 2008. There is also another project for a visitors’ centre at Tarxien as well as a similar project at Ggantija.”

With regard to the Armoury, this has also been the focus of some attention, said Mr Cassar. “The armour was recently rearranged chronologically and multilingual audioguides have been introduced and are included in the ticket price. A public-private partnership has also been signed with Gasan and Mamo for a three-year period; the money will go to upgrade the Armoury.”

Other companies in the private sector have also shown awareness of corporate social responsibility, with HSBC signing an agreement for the Fine Arts Museum and BOV for Tarxien Temples, said Mr Cassar.

However, investment is slower at the War Museum, he admitted. “That does not mean that Heritage Malta is not giving the museum its deserved importance. The agency is currently looking at a holistic approach involving Fort St Elmo and military history to ensure that the National War Museum also benefits from a refurbishment programme. Meanwhile, two satellite rooms at the War Museum are being slowly refurbished. But when you have 21 sites which are open daily – as well as another 14 sites (some of these are open occasionally such as Ta’ Hagrat and Skorba Temples in Mgarr open every Tuesday, Ta’ Mintna Catacombs in Mqabba open every last Sunday of the month, etc) which are closed because of conservation issues – and a very limited capital budget, unfortunately you have to make priorities. And where do you draw the line? People who are enthusiasts of war artefacts will probably say that the War Museum should be at the top of the list, natural history enthusiasts will put their claim as well, while people in the archaeological field will say that the Museum of Archaeology should be the priority.”

That, incidentally, is another huge project, said Mr Cassar. “We’re currently working on the upper floors of the National Museum of Archaeology in Valletta so that in a few months’ time, the upper floors will be open to the public with a permanent collection.”