Restoration of the Street Shrine dedicated to Saint Joseph, in Mqabba
Positioned on the façade of a corner house in Triq San Bazilju, this semi-circular niche is dedicated to Saint Joseph. The Saint Joseph niche is attributed to Pawl Xwiereb in 1870, as a certain Baskal Xwiereb remembers Pawl making a design of the niche.1 The owners of the property that the niche forms a part of are uncertain as to whether the niche was painted or not.2
The Restoration Process
The niche and statue were cleaned from biological growth. Cleaning tests were carried out to identify the most efficient and least invasive method to be used. The cleaning was mostly done mechanically, using soft water and nylon brushes. On more durable deposits, such as flaking surface paint, hand-cleaning tools—such as a surgical blade—were required. Once the flaking paint was removed and all plastic repair had cured, a transparent velatura (a thin limewash) finish was applied to protect the stone surface.
References
1. Farrugia, G. (1999). Storja tan-niċeċ fl – Imqabba.
2. Ibid.