COMTEC, Malta’s leading company in the field of pest control, is sponsoring the conservation of the notarial volume of Giacomo Baldacchino’s eyewitness account of the arrival of the ‘Gran Soccorso’ in September 1565, which is said to be a critical tipping point in the battle against the Ottoman forces during the Great Siege.
Giacomo Baldacchino practised as a Notary in the early decades of the Knights’ rule. Even though it was a time of war, during the Siege he continued to draw up deeds and this particular volume sheds light on one of the glorious chapters of our nation’s history.
The conservation is being undertaken as part of a scheme initiated by the Notarial Archives Resources Council (NARC), which is a voluntary organization, entitled ‘Adopt a Notary’. Dr Joan Abela, who is heading the rehabilitation project at the Notarial Archives, said that all conservation work will be supervised by top book and paper conservator Dr Theresa Zammit Lupi. Dr Abela further stated that it is a great satisfaction to witness the levels of excellence which the NARC are attaining in book and paper conservation. Over many past years Comtec has been involved in preservation projects that have contributed towards the restoration of various items which have been brought to their original state as part of its professional work. Such an undertaking is seen as being part of the company’s firm commitment to a culture of Corporate Social Responsibility.

The Notarial Archives based in St Christopher Street, Valletta were set up by Grand Master Lascaris in 1640.They are a repository of over 20,000 registers with the oldest preserved notarial volume being the one authored by Notary Paolo Bonello dating back to 1467 with Notary Salvatore Ciantar being listed as the first Archivist. A treasure trove of information, some of the documents and deeds date back to the 1400’s and provide a unique insight about daily life in Malta. Unfortunately, over the years, a lack of sufficient funding programmes has not helped the state of some of the documents which have suffered from being stored in damp and inadequate environmental conditions. The collection has also suffered damage from bomb raids and other misfortunes during the war years.
Today the archives require all the support they can muster from all sectors since they are an important momument to our national identity and heritage

“COMTEC are not just proud but privileged to support the Notarial Archives Resources Council, as the ongoing work being undertaken here will leave a long lasting effect of immense benefit to researchers.We hope that like others before us, many others will take cue and follow suit in the coming years to help preserve a very important part of our National Heritage by fostering a strong sense of corporate social responsibility towards the preservation of a very important part of our Maltese cultural identity “.