From Destruction to Preservation: Towards the Antiquities Protection Act (1925)

This year marks a century since the enactment of the Antiquities Protection Act of 1925 – the law that laid the foundations for safeguarding Malta’s archaeological and cultural heritage.

To commemorate this milestone, Heritage Malta presents a new Espresso exhibition at the National Museum of Archaeology in Valletta, tracing the crucial historical developments that led to the passing of the Act.
The exhibition highlights the pivotal events, discoveries and challenges that fuelled the growing recognition of Malta’s archaeological importance and the urgent need for legal protection.

The exhibition features early excavation records, archival documents, and photographs – including those from the destroyed Kerċem Neolithic site in Gozo. Attention is given to the Buqana site, the first Neolithic burial ground to be uncovered after the discovery of the Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum.
Unlike the latter, the Buqana site was systematically documented in accordance with the 1910 Protection of Antiquities Ordinance.
However, this framework proved insufficient, as shown by the damage sustained at sites such as Mtarfa – developments that contributed to the enactment of the more comprehensive 1925 Protection of Antiquities Act.

The exhibition opens on Wednesday 8th October and runs until the 31st of January 2026 at the National Museum of Archaeology in Valletta. Opening hours are available at Opening Hours – Heritage Malta.

Admission is free, and an illustrated catalogue will be available soon at the museum and on Heritage Malta’s online store.