Valletta Cruise Port has recently completed the restoration of the historic Forni Stores on Valletta's waterfront.
The buildings known as Forni Stores consist of two separate blocks that vary in size and proportion.
The block closest to Pinto Stores is known as Forni 1 and was built in 1720, with its facade divided into two bays. The other block, known as Forni 2, consists of three bays and is older, dating from 1626. In 1810, the British Navy converted it into a bakery.
This was the first naval bakery to supply the growing navy with ship biscuits. However, the increasing size of the navy during the first half of the 19th century necessitated the construction of a larger bakery, designed to meet the required rate of biscuit production.
The Valletta waterfront, located in Malta's Grand Harbour, is highly vulnerable to the elements, so great attention is paid to protecting the many elements of these historic buildings from erosion.
Stephen Xuereb, CEO of the Cruise Port of Valletta and Chief Operating Officer of Global Ports Holding, commented: “Working in buildings of this age and cultural significance is an honor, but it also carries a great responsibility. The Cruise Port of Valletta strives to carry the beauty of these buildings into the future by actively preserving our heritage and planning for its future.”
“It is vital to preserve Malta’s unique architectural heritage, especially through the conservation of our traditional landscape and local stone. It is our prerogative to be the custodians of this plot of land within our historic Grand Harbour and to maintain efforts to preserve it.”“.
The restoration of the Forni Stores was a very elaborate process that lasted 11 months. All the stones were carefully numbered, and those that were badly deteriorated were repaired or replaced.
The cleaning included the manual removal of accumulated dirt and dust, present mainly on the stones that made up the cornices or the projecting parts of the building, as well as loose stone fragments.
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