The restoration is to take place of the statues of St Peter and St Paul in Fontana through an agreement signed between the Fontana Local Council and the Parish.

Mayor Saviour Borg, Executive Secretary Heidi Grech and Parish Priest Rev. Simon M. Cachia, have signed an agreement by means of which the Fontana Local Council will be carrying out works to restore the two statues of St Peter and St Paul which are found on the facade of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Church.

These statues were sculpted by Giovanni Gafà, a resident of Nadur, and had originally been placed inside St. George’s Basilica in Victoria, one on each side of the titular painting.

Towards the beginning of the 20th century they were donated to the Fontana Parish Church dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Jesus, and at the time were placed on two pedestals, one at each end of the steps leading to the parvis.At the time when the naves of the church were being constructed, towards the end of the 1960s, the statues were placed on the church facade.

The statues were sculpted in limestone and over the years suffered damage due to corrosion, thus the Council felt that they should be duly restored in order that they may be conserved for the benefit of future generations.

The Fontana Local Council said that the Parish accepted this suggestion and the Council is now in a position to submit the relative application with the Planning Authority and to subsequently implement this conservation project.

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