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435

NOTES FOR A HISTORY OF

CORAL FISHING AND CORAL
ARTEFACTS IN MALTA1
Francesca Balzan* and Alan Deidun**

The Significance of Coral: Apotropaic, Medical, Symbolic, Precious

C oral has been prized for centuries due to its perceived protective qualities
against disease, the devil and harmful supernatural forces. Fashioned into
beads, horns, hands, or left in its natural state in the form of little branches,
coral talismans were worn on the person, and especially by children who were
particularly susceptible to these dangers.2
The perceived apotropaic qualities of coral are rooted in popular tradition.3
Moreover, the appearance of coral in its natural form in the shape of a miniature
leafless tree of vivid red colour had originally led to its association with the blood
of the Medusa. By a process of syncretisation, this was later taken up in Christianity
to symbolize the sacred blood of Christ, both of which were considered protective.
The use of coral beads in rosaries, and in necklaces depicted around the Holy
Infant’s neck in devotional paintings, is evidence of this belief.
  * Francesca Balzan is an art historian and is curator at Palazzo Falson Historic House Museum, Mdina. She
holds degrees in socio-legal studies, a diploma and warrant of Legal Procurator and degrees in Art History.
She has delivered lectures and contributed a number of papers both in Malta and overseas on her topic of
specialization, which is the history of Maltese jewellery. She is the author of Jewellery in Malta Treasures
from the Island of the Knights (1530-1798), published by Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti in 2009.
  ** Dr Alan Deidun is a Lecturer in Biology at the IOI-Malta Operational Centre of the University of Malta.
He holds a PhD in Biology and is recognized as a Chartered Biologist by the Institute of Biology in London.
He has published over 30 peer-reviewed papers on various aspects of coastal and marine biology such
as coastal conservation, ecology of beaches and rocky shores, marine alien species and management of
MPAs. He has participated in numerous conferences on coastal and marine biology such as CIESM and
MEDCOAST. He also serves as a freelance marine EIA consultant and is a keen SCUBA diver.
Acknowledgements: Judge Giovanni Bonello, Dr Nicholas Vella, Mr Olvin Vella, Mr John J. Borg, Dr Albert
Ganado, Fr Ìor© Aquilina OFM, Dott. Alessandro Quercia, Mr Nathaniel Cutajar, Archivist and staff of the
National Archives Malta (Santo Spirito), Ms Sharon Sultana, Prof. Charles Savona-Ventura, Prof. Roger Ellul-
Micallef, The Ministry for Resources and Rural Affairs – Malta, The National Museum of Natural History –
Mdina, Dr. Matthew Camilleri – FAO (Rome).
  1 This paper is an initial study of the sources available for a fuller consideration of coral in Malta, a topic that
is currently being researched by the authors and will be published in greater detail in future.
  2 Pliny the Elder records that coral branches were hung around infants’ necks to protect them from danger Cf.
Naturalis Historia 32.11.24.
  3 Coral is still commonly believed, amongst the older generation in Malta, to ward off danger.
‘The red coral single horn, often surmounted by a closed crown to indicate the supremacy of the phallic emblem
against the evil eye, is still very popular in Malta and on the Italian mainland.’ Cf. G. Zammit-Maempel, ‘Fossil
Sharks’ Teeth: A Medieval Safeguard against Poisoning’, in Melita Historica, vi, 4, 1975, 391-410.
436 Francesca Balzan and Alan Deidun

Coral was also held to have medicinal uses, apparently due to its astringent
qualities. It was ground and included in various preparations to address a number
of ailments.4
In addition to all of its other qualities, the decorative appeal of coral has always
been appreciated in different cultures around the world. With its strong colour
and structure, coral can be worked into beads and carved into sculpted artefacts.
As a result it has been used as a component of jewellery for personal adornment
for centuries up to contemporary times.
Important centres of working of coral artefacts were located in areas where
coral could be easily sourced. Sicily, and Trapani on its west coast in particular,
has a long-standing tradition of harvesting and working in coral and the resultant
art works, very often using tear-shaped fragments of coral mounted on a copper
gilt base and surrounding coral statuettes, are unique to Trapani and immediately
recognizable as such.
Although coral has, for millennia, also been present in Maltese waters,
an equivalent industry and art seems simply not to have occurred in Malta.
Consequently, little importance has so far been given to the study of coral from
Maltese waters. Few references are found in the documents and travellers’
accounts rarely, if ever, mention Maltese coral. The interest in fishing for
coral seems to have been sporadic, taken up and then forgotten, until the next
‘discovery’, decades or even centuries later. Despite the paucity of information
available, this paper attempts to chart the instances when coral was being fished
in order to provide a starting point for a comprehensive study of coral and coral
fishing in Malta.5

The Biology of Coral Species

The basic unit of all coral species is the polyp, a sac-like body having two layers
of tissue: an external one, known as the ectoderm or epidermis, and an internal one
known as the gastrodermis or endodermis.6 Corals can be colonial, forming large
colonies or even reefs, but, contrary to common misconception, some species of
coral can also be solitary.
Only a fraction of the 200 species of coral found in the Mediterranean are
considered as precious in view of their commercial value for the jewellery
  4 Pliny the Elder, 32.11.
  5 It is not the intention of the authors to provide an exhaustive list of all the sources which refer to coral in
classical times, but only to those which have links with Maltese coral. For studies on the history of coral
since classical times see C. Maltese & M.C. Di Natale (eds), Coralli Talismani Sacri e Profani, Novecento,
Italy 1986.
  6 A gelatinous layer known as the mesoglea is sandwiched between the two. The polyp secretes calcium
carbonate from the ectoderm in order to construct a rigid or semi-rigid exoskeleton within which it retracts
if disturbed and which persists long after the polyp dies. Whilst a disc-shaped ring of tentacles surrounds
their single orifice on the upper side (which serves both as a mouth and an anus), a basal disc is located on
the lower side, affording anchorage to the substratum.
CORAL FISHING AND CORAL ARTEFACTS IN MALTA 437

industry. Such precious coral species include the emblematic Corallium rubrum,
the precious red coral species which is endemic to the Mediterranean and to
the contigious eastern Atlantic regions. Other precious corals fished from the
Mediterranean include the golden (or false black) corals (e.g. Gerardia sauvignii)
and the black corals (Antipathes spp, Leiopathes glaberrima).7
Precious coral species are generally long-lived organisms with low growth
rates and low reproductive rates. First reproduction is reached at a substantial
age of more than a decade (in C. rubrum, sexual maturity is reached after 3-10
years). Many species can probably reach an age of more than a century,8 with L.
glaberrima presumed to survive in excess of 2000 years.9
Corals belong to one of the oldest extant animal taxa in the world, with their
origins being traced back to the Pre-Cambrian. The Mediterranean was previously
endowed with extensive coral reefs, characteristic of warmer waters and which
form the foundations of certain rock types in the Maltese Islands. Coinciding with
the early Miocene, it appears that many of these reefs suffered a serious regression
and today, only a few zones (known as deep-sea, cold-water coral reefs) in this
sea have been shown to bear live specimens, such as those found in the Ionian Sea
and even in Maltese waters.10 The deep-sea coral reef fossils formed by species
such as Lophelia pertusa, Madrepora oculata and Desmophyllum dianthus found
in the Mediterranean date back to the end of the Pliocene and the early Pleistocene
(1.8 million years ago),11 which makes them the oldest ones found to date.12

The Earliest Evidence of Maltese Coral

‘Et vivum lapidem et circa
Melitensia nectunt Coralia…’

  7 Corals belong to a group of cnidarians (which includes jellyfish and hydrozoans too) known as anthozoans,
of which two sub-classes exist: the Octocorallia and the Hexacorallia. Such a distinction, as can be deduced
from the name, is attributed primarily to body symmetry, with the former’s polyps exhibiting an 8-fold
symmetry of the tentacles and the latter exhibiting a 6-fold symmetry of the same tentacles. The diverse
array of coral dictates that Octocorallia is further divided into five orders – the soft corals, the organ-pipe
and tree fern corals, the Indo-Pacific blue corals, the sea pens and the gorgonians (or sea fans, sea feathers).
The latter order is replete with species of precious coral, including the well-known precious red coral of the
Mediterranean. Hexacorallia includes the stony corals (such as the madreporans), black coral and the sea
anemones.
  8 G. Tsounis, S. Rossi, R.W. Grigg, G. Santangelo, L. Bramanti and J.M. Gili, ‘The Exploitation and
Conservation of Precious Corals’, in Oceanography and Marine Biology Annual Review, Vol 48, in press.
  9 E.B. Roark, T.P. Guilderson, R.B. Dunbar & B.L. Ingram, ‘Radiocarbon-Based ages and growth rates of
Hawaiian deep-sea corals’, in Marine Ecology Progress Series 327, 2006, 1-14.
10 P..J. Schembri, M. Dimech, M. Camilleri, R. Page, ‘Living deep-water Lophelia and Madrepora in Maltese
waters’, in Cahiers de Biologie Marine, 2007, 48: 77-83.
11 M. Taviani, C. Corselli, A. Freiwald, E. Malinverno, F. Mastrototaro, A. Remia, A. Savini, A. Tursi
& the CORAL Shipboard Staff, ‘Pleistocene to recent deep-coral growth on peri-ionian escarpments,
Mediterranean basin’, in Geophysical Research Abstracts, Vol. 5, 10916, 2003.
12 Expedition Scientists (2005). Modern carbonate mounds: Porcupine drilling. IODP Prel. Rept., 307.
doi:10.2204/iodp.pr.307.
438 Francesca Balzan and Alan Deidun

De Soldanis reproduces the above passage (which he erroneously attributes to

Horace the poet) in relation to Maltese coral.13 This passage, originally written
in the Augustan period, is probably the earliest documented reference to Maltese
coral.14 It actually appears in a poem on hunting, the Cynegeticon libri, penned
by the Roman poet Grattius Faliscus (c. 1st cent. BC – 1st cent. AD).15 De Soldanis
seems to have taken it slightly out of context or thought the context irrelevant
for his purpose; however, the context is extremely useful for a study on coral.
Joseph Busuttil, who has analysed the preceding and following lines in detail,
explains that the poet mentioned Maltese coral in the context of the fact that
the Romans would hang it, together with herbs, shells and particular stones,
and while reciting magic incantations, around the necks of dogs suffering from
rabies.16 It is probable that these corals were also considered to have amuletic
properties and could prevent a healthy dog from contracting rabies. Referred to
also as a tutela, Busuttil interprets this as a prophylactic amulet placed around the
sick dog’s neck.17 One can conclude that, for the reputation of Maltese coral to
have travelled so far, it must necessarily imply an active coral fishing industry in
Maltese waters at the time.
Very few pieces of coral were found in an archaeological context in Malta.
The only ones known and studied are a few pieces in their natural state found at
the archaeological site connected to the cult of Hera at Tas-Sil©, in the South of
Malta.18 These were either white or of pale pink hue and are believed to be of the

13 G.P. Agius de Soldanis, Rev Fr Anthony Mercieca, Gozo Ancient and Modern Religious and Profane,
Media Centre Publications, Malta 1999, 81.
14 Brunella Bruno seems unsure that it is Maltese coral which is here being referred to. She says: ‘Another
activity probably practiced in the nearby waters of the archipelago was coral fishing. In a poetic passage
about hunting by the Augustan writer Grattius Faliscus (source no. 16), there is a reference (uncertain) to
curalia melitensia.’ Cf. B. Bruno, Roman and Byzantine Malta Trade and Economy, Midsea Books, Malta
2009, 73.
15 The full reference is as follows: ‘....they twine necklets around, strung of sacred shells, and the stone of
living fire and red coral from Malta and herbs aided by magic incantations. And so the peace of the gods
won by the protective amulet is found to vanquish baleful influences and the venom of the evil eye.’ Cf.
J. Wight Duff, Arnold M. Duff, Loeb Classical Library’s Minor Latin Poets, Vol.1, 1935, 191, consulted
online: http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Grattius/Cynegeticon*.html.
16 J. Busuttil, ‘Three articles: The coral industry’, Journal of the Faculty of Arts, IV, 1971, 332-3. As regards
dog jewellery bearing a Maltese connection: ‘Tali coralli, usati per cani, vengono pure detti melitensi,
per l’uso e la tradizione che se ne ha a Malta’. Cf. C. Maltese & M.C. Di Natale, Coralli: Talismani
Sacri e Profani: Catalogo della Mostra L’arte del Corallo in Sicilia, Trapani, Museo Regionale Pepoli,
1 marzo-1 giugno 1986, Novecento, Italy 1986, 97 & 99. Di Natale quotes G.Tescione, Il corallo nella
storia e nell’arte, Napoli 1965, 104 as her source for this information. A seventeenth century painting in a
Palermo private collection of a small (Maltese?) dog wearing bracelets of beads around the legs and some
other jewellery (not clear enough to make out) around the collar area is reproduced in C. Maltese & M.C.
Di Natale 1986, 99.
17 Busuttil, 332-3.
18 The information regarding the Tas-Sil© coral finds is published in detail in: A. Quercia, ‘Il corallo nei
santuari del Mediterraneo antico. Il caso di Tas Silg. (Malta)’, in Uomini, Piante e Animali nella Dimensione
del Sacro, Edipuglia 2008, and A. Quercia, ‘Il corallo nel santuario di Tas Silg a Malta. Alcuni spunti di
CORAL FISHING AND CORAL ARTEFACTS IN MALTA 439

genus Dendrophyllia ramea L. The value which was attached to coral as an amulet
corresponded with the belief in Hera’s protective powers. This could explain the
association of coral with such a cultic site and could possibly point to its use as a
votive offering to protect navigation, as coral was credited with this quality and
Hera was invoked to protect navigators. Moreover, the site of Tas-Sil© overlooks
Marsaxlokk Bay, one of the principal harbours in Malta. These coral fragments
were found in areas associated with the practice of the cult ranging from the late
4th cent. B.C. to the 1st cent. A.D.
Enquiries at the National Museum of Archaeology have not turned up
any further finds of coral. This could be due to the fact that coral is not easily
distinguished from other materials found in an excavation as it tends to lose its red
pigment and becomes powdery and white when buried for prolonged periods.19
Although Pliny records that Mediterranean coral was so much in demand in India
that all the coral fished was sent there and therefore few pieces remained in the
places that it was sourced from, it seems stretched to argue that this is the reason
why barely any coral from classical times has been found in Malta.20

Coral in Medieval Malta

Few documentary sources and archaeological finds survive which throw any
light on medieval Maltese jewellery and the materials of which it was composed.
Similarly, we are left rather in the dark as to the existence and use of coral or
otherwise in medieval times. Reference is made to precious stones in the Monroy
episode, but coral is not specifically mentioned then.
In 1418, coral was discovered in the sea off Trapani in nearby Sicily and, from
that point onwards, a thriving industry focusing on the fishing and working of
coral commenced, spearheaded by Jews who had originated from North Africa.21
Would this have had some impact in Malta? Were coral beads brought to Malta
from Trapani and did this discovery instigate the Maltese to exploit their own
coral reefs? Were there known coral reefs in Malta at the time?
No evidence to address these questions has yet emerged; however, what is
certain is that, by the last decades of the fifteenth century, rosaries made of coral

riflessione’, in G. Malerba & P. Visentini (ed.), Atti del 4° Convegno Nazionale di Archeologia, Quaderni
del Museo Archeologico del Friuli Occidentale 6, 2005, 395-401. The authors are grateful to Dott. A.
Quercia and Dr N. Vella for making these papers available.
19 N. Cutajar, personal communication, 5/iii/2010.
20 ‘But at the present day, owing to the value set upon it as an article of exportation, it has become so extremely
rare, that it is seldom to be seen even in the regions that produce it’. Cf. Pliny the Elder, 32.11 as translated
in Pliny the Elder, The Natural History, John Bostock, MD, FRS, H.T. Riley Esq., BA, Ed. Available
online at: edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0137%3Abook%3D32%3Achapter%3D11#
note1 ).
21 C. del Mare, Mirabilia Coralii Baroque masterpieces in coral by Jewish and Sicilian craftsmen in Trapani,
Exh. Catal. Torre del Greco 20/12/08 - 01/02/09, 13 et. seq.
440 Francesca Balzan and Alan Deidun

are listed in inventories drawn up in Malta.22 The tendency to have rosaries made
specifically of coral would persist throughout the ensuing Knights’ period.23 This
might be due to the fact that coral was probably easily available and possibly
relatively cheap, but also because the use of coral had other perceived benefits.
This is an interesting example, paralleled in Sicily and elsewhere, where items
which are apparently purely devotional incorporate superstitious elements,
combining as it were the religious with the profane and doubling the perceived
efficacy of the object in question against the devil.24

Coral at the Time of the Order of St John

By the sixteenth century, coral started to appear regularly in inventories of private
individuals in Malta, mostly still in connection with rosaries.25
One remarkable piece of coral to survive is a coral poison credence, currently
conserved at the Mdina Cathedral Museum. This coral branch from which
emerges a crucifix, is mounted on a silver base. Its original use may have been to
hang fossil shark teeth from it which, together with the coral, were held to have
the ability to detect the presence of poison. The poison credence was, therefore,
present as a precautionary measure at the scene of a banquet. Poison credences
are extremely rare and few survive worldwide. By 1575, this particular artefact is
recorded in the Cathedral inventories.26
A reference in a late eighteenth century inventory to ‘tre alberi di corallo
salvaggio con loro piedi stalli’ could be the lasting evidence of this ancient usage
of coral.27 The question arises whether the Cathedral Museum example is made
of coral sourced from Maltese waters and, if so, were others made and exported
for use to the rest of Europe?
By the middle of the seventeenth century, the working of coral in Trapani
had flourished to the extent that there were several workshops and coral was

22 See S. Fiorini (editor), Documentary Sources of Maltese History, Part 1, Notarial Documents, No. 1 Notary
Giacomo Zabbara R494/1(I):1486-1488, Malta 1996, 14, 229.
23 F. Balzan, Jewellery in Malta Treasures from the Island of the Knights (1530-1798), Fondazzjoni Patrimonju
Malti, Malta 2009, 7.
24 M.C. di Natale makes an interesting point in this regard: ‘Nel medioevo cristiano il ‘Paternoster’’,
preghiera che tra l’altro serviva ad invocare l’allontanamento delle tentazioni del demonio, tramite
proprio l’uso orientale di contar preghiere con grani, da’ il suo nome al corallo, che tra tutti i grani era
quello che maggiormente si legava al concetto di esorcizzazione dei mali demoniaci, Dal XII secolo inizia
la consuetudine di aggiungere ai Paternostri una Ave Maria e verso la fine del XV secolo il ‘Paternoster’
si trasforma in Rosario. Non mancheranno infatti dipinti da questo periodo in poi riproducenti corone di
corallo rosso in mano alla Vergine.’ Cf. C. Maltese & M.C. Di Natale, Coralli: Talismani Sacri e Profani:
Catalogo della Mostra L’arte del Corallo in Sicilia, Trapani, Museo Regionale Pepoli, 1 marzo-1 giugno
1986, Novecento, Italy, 82.
25 For example: National Archives of Malta (NAM), Magna Curia Castellania (MCC), Acta Originalia (AO),
Vol III, Inventarium bonorum ereditariorum Oliverii Cassar, f.30: ‘duj resti de paternostrij de corallo’.
26 For information about this poison credence see Zammit-Maempel 1975, 391-410, where the use of this
coral artefact was first identified and studied in detail.
27 NAM, MCC, Reg. Inventorior Bonor., Vol 5, f. 98.
CORAL FISHING AND CORAL ARTEFACTS IN MALTA 441

no longer used solely to make

beads for paternostri (rosaries)
but veritable sculpted works of art
were being produced. An art form
which remains unique to Trapani
flourished. This was the combination
of carved pieces of coral mounted
with the retroincastro technique
onto gilt copper artefacts. Some
examples of this exquisite art
made their way to Malta. These
include the superb seventeenth
century monstrance belonging to
the Conventual Church of St John
(See Fig. 1),28 the Mdina Cathedral
Museum monstrance, and the
capezzale in the Church dedicated
to Our Lady of Pilar, Valletta.
An interest in coral fishing and
some connections with Trapani
emerge in the same period in Malta.
In 1647, Gio. Francesco Abela
wrote that fine coral could be found
in Maltese waters. Proof of this, he
says, is that persons involved in that
trade, as well as fishermen, visited
on more than one occasion to work
it in a manner similar to that of
the city of Trapani, receiving the Fig. 1: Gilt copper monstrance studded with coral
and enamel, 17th century, Trapanese, Treasury of the
privilege to do so from the Grand Co-Cathedral of St John. Image Copyright © The St
Master.29 The fact that they were John’s Co-Cathedral Foundation/Midsea Books, Photo
granted this permission implies that by Daniel Cilia.

28 Recently restored, this monstrance has been published in S. Guido ed., Restauri e Riscoperte di Scultura del
Barocco Romano a Malta, Superintendence of Cultural Heritage and Midsea Books Ltd, Malta 2005, 85 et.
seq.
29 ‘Non è scarso il nostro delitioso mare di generar anch’egli rami di fino corallo atteso, che più volte essendo
à bella posta venuti alcuni del mestiero, e pescatori n’hanno trovato, e posto in opera à guisa di quello
della Città di Trapani, & ottenutone perciò privilegio dalla benignità del Sig. G. Maestro Principe.’ Cf.
G.F. Abela, Della Descrittione di Malta Isola nel Mare Siciliano con le sue antichita, ed altre notizie, Malta
1647, facsimile edition Midsea Books, Malta 1984, Bk1, 77 not.12, p.136. Interestingly, a piece of coral
in its natural state was included in Abela’s own collection. Cf. K. Gambin, One Hundred Years of Heritage
1903-2003, Heritage Books in Association with Heritage Malta, Malta 2003, 10.
442 Francesca Balzan and Alan Deidun

there was no competition from Maltese fishermen and craftsmen. As has been
pointed out above, there is no indigenous tradition of working coral in Malta,
which seems to further confirm this hypothesis.
The reference to the working of Maltese coral in the Trapanese manner indicates
that these persons were very familiar with that particular art and, therefore,
probably came from Trapani and produced carved Maltese coral artefacts that
could perhaps be passed off as Trapanese. Unfortunately, Abela stops short of
telling us which market, if at all, this worked coral was intended for. Abela seems
more interested in proving that Maltese coral was of good enough quality to
compare with the more famous Trapanese coral. Could it be that the Order and
the indigenous population had not realized the potential of Maltese coral as a
resource which could be commercially exploited? Was the difficulty of fishing
coral, which entailed specific equipment and techniques, a sufficient deterrent for
Maltese fishermen?
The commercial networks that emerged in Trapani as a result of this major
industry were far more complicated than the above case implies. Ad corallandum
companies were set up to regulate the various roles, covering the fishing of the
coral, supply of boats, equipment, distribution of the coral and, later on, its
working and sale overseas. Similar set-ups are not known in the Maltese context,
once again showing that coral cannot have been exploited to the same extent
in Malta; however, further focused research still needs to be undertaken before
this possibility is entirely dismissed. It must also be noted that coral remained in
demand for objects of personal adornment amongst the indigenous population
because several inventories attest to its presence amongst the personal possessions
of individuals.30
Moreover, a case regarding the sale of coral may be indicative of further
similar activity of coral shipped through Malta. The 1682 case dealt with the sale
of a small quantity of (Maltese?) coral worth around 80 scudi which was sold by a
certain Jacobus Lavernia (Invernia) to Aureglio Varagni, a Greek youth on board
a ship which was in harbour in Malta. Lavernia later attempted to stop the ship
that Varagni was travelling on and experts were appointed by the court to value
the coral. The appointed experts were Xaverius Rosselli, who may have been one
of the members of the Rosselli family of silversmiths, and Leonardo de Paula.
Their estimates varied widely with Rosselli valuing the coral at 12 tarì per ounce
while de Paula valued it at 20 tarì per ounce.31
During the eighteenth century, some more evidence for coral fishing in Maltese
waters emerges but the overall picture indicates that these were isolated incidents

30 For example: National Archives Malta (NAM), Magna Curia Castellania (MCC), Reg. Invent. Haereditar,
Vol. 2, f.595 (doi fili di corallo), NAM, MCC, Reg. Invent. Haereditar., Vol.2, f.826 (guleri di curallo no.
31… braccioletti di corallo no. 2 … corona di corallo incatenata con argento no.1), etc.
31 NAM, MCC, AO, Vol. 479, ff. 241 et. seq.
CORAL FISHING AND CORAL ARTEFACTS IN MALTA 443

and there was as yet no discernible attempt to systematically fish for coral. All
indications which have turned up so far show that coral fishing was done by
Italian, predominantly Sicilian, coral fishermen, probably because they had the
know-how and the tools and technique to harvest it while the proximity to their
bases in Italy rendered the Maltese locations more attractive.
De Soldanis informs us that:

‘Our sea is plentiful not only in fish but also in coral trees, especially
that part of the shore near Xlendi Bay. At this spot, at the time of
Grand Master Zondadori32, and with his permission, some coral
fishermen came from Trapani, Italy, with their fishing boats and
fished up loads of coral. Also in 1743, in Malta, some Sicilian coral
fishermen came with their boats to fish for coral but they were
prohibited to do so, by the coast guards, because of the plague that
hit Messina a day after they arrived in Malta. So they had to go back
to Sicily.’33

Whether the 1743 group of fishermen are the same as the ones recorded in a
1743 petition by 25 Trapanese corallari who owned boats, requesting permission
to harvest coral in Maltese waters, is not entirely clear. According to the petition,
a quantity of coral was spotted towards the North East and petitioners requested
the permission of the Order to fish this coral and asked that the Maltese Padron
Leonardo Schembri accompany them with a speronara and seven men to help in
the task.34
An eighteenth century chronicler also records that, in 1747, a large number of
Sicilian boats crossed to Malta to fish for coral. They were probably not aware of
the exact location, we are told, as they took a Maltese padrone with them to show
them where it lay ‘essendo questo in mezzo del mare, benche non tanto profondo,
e non lungi di Malta’. A fifth of the catch would be given to the Maltese padrone

32 Grand Master Marcantonio Zondadori reigned from 1720 to 1722.

33 Agius de Soldanis, Mercieca, 81.
34 Archives of the Order in Malta (AOM) 1188, 318-319: di venticinque proprietari di barche trapanesi.
Resc. 20.V.1743 ‘Antonio Callotta, Sebastiano Bardassuni, Giuseppe Casala’, Geronimo Peamo, Carmino
Singa, Vincenzo Garofalo, Giuseppe Garofalo, Nicolo’ D’Amico, Giacomo Torrenti, Tomaso Galoppo,
Antonio di Martino, Baldassare Megliuri, Gaspare la Citra, Nicola Vent’Aperto, Marco Romano, Andrea
d’Angelo, Stefano Campagna, Giacomo Lazzara, Vincenzo Cruci, Leonardo Fodra’, Carmino Giaganti,
Vito di Fici, Leonardo Forciano, Carlo D’Angelo, Natale Forrano, Pni di venticinque barche Trapanei,
da’ pescare Corallo, Um:I Sev.i di V.A.S. Umil.te rappresentano, aver presentito esservi in vista di questo
Suo Dominio, ed in questi suoi mari verso il Gregale qualche quantita’ di Corallo, quale desiderano essi
di pescare e non potendo cio’ fare senza il permesso di V.A.S., come Prencipe, la supp:no instantemente
affinche si compiacesse accordarli la necessaria licenza, ed insieme abilitare a’ Pn Leonardo Schembri
Maltese affinche si portasse con essi loro con sua speronara rmata con sette Uomini, per assistere a’ i
med:I in d.a pesca....’
444 Francesca Balzan and Alan Deidun

as payment.35 This begs the question: if the Maltese knew about coral in Maltese
waters why is there no evidence that they exploited it? They clearly attached
value to it, as shown by the fact that the Maltese padrone was going to be paid in
kind with a fifth of the catch. What then did he use this coral for? Would he have
traded the coral in its natural state or, rather, had it worked into artefacts and then
sold the finished product?
References to coral jewellery and beads forming components of bracelets
and necklaces can be found in Maltese inventories of the eighteenth century.36
Interspersed with gold and silver beads, the rich colour of coral was undoubtedly
exploited for its decorative effect as well as for its other perceived properties.
Well into the eighteenth century the belief that coral had medicinal uses due to
its astringent qualities persisted.37 Corallium rubrum appears in several formats
in the list of medicinals used in the Hospital of the Order in 1769 together with
its price.38 Ground coral features in a recipe for a tincture which was indicated for
use in stomach ailments and several other maladies in a mid-eighteenth century
recipe book compiled by Don Giuseppe Seychel.39 Moreover, red coral was also

35 National Library of Malta Manuscript (NLM) 20, Stromatum Melit. 1755, f.111 [1747 (a 17d Luglio)]:
‘Lun[e]d[i]. Partirono moltiss[im]e barche Siciliane venute dalla Sicilia trascorsi giorni per far la pesca
de Coralli in un luogo in mare non distante da Malta. ‘E qui è da supporre, che I marinari Siciliani non
sapevano il luogo de’ Coralli, e condussero con loro un Pad[ro]ne Maltese, di nome Lorenzo, volg[armen]
te d[et]to P[ad]r[on] Venzu, al quale promisero la 5.a parte semai non erro, della pesca che si farà, per
additargli il luogo, essendo questo in mezzo del mare, benchè non tanto profondo, e non lungi di Malta’
36 For example: NAM, MCC, Reg. Inventor. Bonor., Vol. 1, f.223v: ‘un calazcinde di corallo’; Idem, f.240v:
‘It un paro di brazzoletti di bottoncelli d’oro trameschiati con bottoni di corallo’, etc.
37 By the seventeenth century ‘Corallinea pulv composed of a mixture of opium, myrrh, cascarilla, cinnamon
and powdered red coral was prescribed as an astringent in dysentery and to allay epigastric pains.’ Cf. C.
Savona-Ventura, History of Medical Practice and Pharmacy, online article available at http://reocities.
com/HotSprings/2615/medhist/medicine.html. See also: C. Savona-Ventura, Outlines of Maltese Medical
History, Midsea Books Ltd, Malta 1997, 41-58. and P. Cassar, ‘Two centuries of medical prescribing in
Malta 1683-1882’, St Luke’s Hospital Gazette, 4(2), 1969, 107-112. We are grateful to Prof. Savona-Ventura
for the afore-mentioned references and for the following information: ‘In this article, Dr. Cassar publishes
a list of medicaments moted in registers dating to the late 17th through the 19th century. Corallinae pulv
was mentioned in one register dated to 1723. A mid-19th century manual of pharmaceutics published in
Bologna mentions the Corallina di Corsica, o Corallina Bianca, Corallina officinalis. The substance ‘per
se stessa é affatto inerte, e sembra che la sua riputazione, come antelmintico, sia affatto dipendente dai
fuchi coi quali sempre mescolata, ed all matricie saline di cui é impregnata, e che contengono dello iodio.’
(personal communication 30.iii.2010).
38 L. Farigiani, Taxa recens pretii omnium pharmacorum…, Malta 1769. Our thanks to Prof. Roger Ellul-
Micallef for drawing our attention to this publication.
39 NLM 1173, Giardino di Bellissimi Segreti e Ricette: Effetti della Tintura del Corallo: La Tintura del Corallo
per l’analogia, che ha’ con li spiriti vitali, ed il caldo innato, cacciando dall’interno tutte le superfluita’ ed
augumentando, e roborando (?) esso caldo innato, restituisce il Corpo in una temperie (?) tanto adeguata
che rende l’uomo in modo che facilmente supera i morbi, sana il mal caduco e si loda particolarmente
a’ flussi bianchi e rossi delle donne, a’ cui giova in modo tale, che non la fa’ piu’ incorrere in questo
ne in altro simil’male. Ferma il sangue da’ qualunque parte del corpo. Sana il mal’francese ancoreche
invechiata(inocchiata mocchiata??) con piu’ efficacia, e senza pericolo, che l’istessa polvere del Corallo
non si faccia quano piu’ vaglia nei febri pestilenti co dichiara la storia a’ mano scritta d’Angel:mo Boezio
(f.1v) The recipe for ‘Tintura del Corallo’ is to be found in f. 2 of this manuscript. Other recipes in this
CORAL FISHING AND CORAL ARTEFACTS IN MALTA 445

to be found in eighteenth century apothecaries’ stock in Malta.40 On the nature of

Maltese coral, de Soldanis comments:

‘Maltese corals come in two different colours, red and white. Some
say it is a stone because it looks like stone but it is in fact a tree like
any other tree that grows and spreads in the bottom of the sea.’41

Apart from indicating that it was to be found in the waters off Xlendi, Gozo,
de Soldanis also states that ‘Krolla’ (the Maltese term for coral, and which he
wrongly identifies as ‘lapis pyriten’) is to be found:

‘Il nostro mare di Malta e Gozo, propriamente sopra Ricasoli, e

ne’Frei del Gozo sotto Sannat produce un bel Corallo……Osservai
varie specie di Coralli tratti dal nostro mare, Corallo bianco,
biancastro, giallo, pavonaccio, verde e nero. Circa le qualità del
Corallo leggi Plinio Lib. 9. c. 30. lib. 36. c. 19. et Lib. 37. ... ’42

It could very well be that de Soldanis’s claim that Maltese coral is present in
different colours (other than black and red) is, in fact, taxonomically incorrect and
other species which superficially resemble coral (e.g. encrusting bryozoans) are
what are here being referred to. Another possible explanation is that de Soldanis
is referring to non-precious coral species fished from our waters. The reference
to black coral, on the other hand, is the first documented instance known to the
present authors of the presence of black coral in Maltese waters.

Fishing for ‘The Red Coral of Commerce’ in the Nineteenth Century

The mid-nineteenth century discovery of ‘coral rocks’ off the coast of Gozo
was very well-documented and led to the first systematic attempt at mapping
the distribution of C. rubrum in Maltese waters. The commercially exploitable
potential of this find quickly set in motion a chain of events.
On 10 July 1862, the Superintendent of Police advised Captain W. Brett, the
Acting Chief Secretary to Government, that

‘… in the Gozo waters a quantity of coral has lately been found and
that many Gozo, Maltese and Sicilian boats are now engaged in

manuscript which mention coral include ‘Ricetta di uno buon medicamento universale, ed effettuoso per lo
stomaco, che si dice alias eflettuario (?) o’ vero Loch Sanum (?)’ which lists ‘coralli rossi pp. una drama
e mezzo’ as well as ‘cristallo di rocca, occhi di granci, madreperla’ and many more ingredients (f.13v.). A
recipe for apoplexy includes ‘Coralli rub: polveriz:ti’ and ‘Lingua d: Pauli polve:ti’ (f.14).
40 Balzan, 87.
41 Agius de Soldanis, Mercieca, 81. The belief that coral belonged to the plant kingdom was an incorrect but
often repeated misconception.
42 NLM, Ms. 143/i, Damma tal kliem Kartaginis mscerred fel fom tal Maltin u Ghaucin…,f.317r.
446 Francesca Balzan and Alan Deidun

such coral fishing which, if successful, will prove a great resource

to these Islands’.43

Another statement follows that a report had been made by a certain M.

Criscuolo44 (later identified as the person who discovered these rocks)

‘…that there are now about 60 Boats fishing on the coral bed,
and … (raising??) the branches of Coral by throwing down heavy
weights with the object of breaking them off and recovering the
pieces so broken. I have seen the Superintendent of Police who has
undertaken to immediately send to the spot a proper trustworthy
officer to personally investigate the matter and take such steps
as may be necessary for the proper protection of the rights of the
Crown, and the interest of Government’.45

A day later, the Chamber of Commerce was quick to address a request to

Captain Brett to suspend any permits for fishing coral until the fishing thereof
could be properly regulated to ensure benefit to the ‘native population’ and this in
the interest of industry and commerce in the country.46 The reply, dated 12 July
1862, reassured the Chamber that the Government had immediately put an end to
these activities as soon as it heard of same (on 10 July).47
A week later, on 17 July 1862, the Superintendent of Ports proposed that :

‘I think it would be most desirable to have their [coral rocks]

positions accurately ascertained and noted on the Charts: with this
view as Captain Spratt48 of H.M.S. ‘Medina’ is at present in Port,
I would suggest that a request to that effect might be made to the
Admiral – The ‘Medina’ I believe leaves this [?] in a day or two
– Mr Criscuolo the discoverer of these rocks being here is ready
to render his assistance in pointing out the positions, and would
accompany the Steamer for that purpose’49

43 NAM, Chief Secretary of Government (CSG) 01, 8824/1862.

44 Also spelt ‘Crescuolo’.
45 NAM, CSG 01, 8824/1862.
46 NAM, CSG 01, 8837/1862.
47 NAM, CSG 04, 8367/1862.
48 For a detailed biography on T.A.B. Spratt see G. Zammit Maempel, Pioneers of Maltese Geology, The
Author, Malta 1989. This biography had previously been published in 1986. Cf. G. Zammit Maempel,
‘T.A.B. Spratt (1811-88) and his Contribution to Maltese Geology’, Melita Historica, ix, 3, 1986, 271-308.
It is to be noted that the aforementioned publication, on page 40, also mentions the discovery of the coral
beds and Spratt’s contribution in carefully charting them.
49 NAM, CSG 01, 8869/1862 (dated 17 July 1862). The request was put to Rear Admiral Codrington (NAM,
CSG 04, 8395/1862).
CORAL FISHING AND CORAL ARTEFACTS IN MALTA 447

In engaging Captain T.A.B. Spratt, who had already achieved considerable

fame, the Government was calling on the best possible technical help.
The reply, dated 19 July 1862, was in the affirmative and Captain Spratt of
HMS Medina was directed ‘to proceed to Gozo for the purpose of ascertaining
the accurate position and extent of the rocks’ on the Governor’s express wish.
Evidently, time was not to be spared as ‘I [the Rear Admiral] have directed Captain
Spratt to proceed on this service as early as convenient and he will probably leave
on Monday or Tuesday next’.50
It only took Captain Spratt 10 days to draw up the survey report to which was
attached a chart clearly marking all the locations where coral was to be found. A
letter, written presumably in Spratt’s own handwriting, is enclosed.51
The report, in the form of a letter dated 29 July 1862 is signed by Spratt.52 In
it he says that he was requested

‘…before leaving the Island on the completion of its Survey examine

and report upon certain Coral rocks recently discovered off Malta
and Gozo, as well as the probable extent of these Coral rocks, with
the view to obtain a knowledge of its commercial importance’.

Performing the survey in unfavourable weather, he was assisted all along

by Criscuolo who accompanied HMS Medina in another boat equipped with
the apparatus required for coral fishing. It seems that Criscuolo had a knack
for detecting the most likely spots for coral to be found and advised Spratt on
the proper coral fishing techniques and apparatus, bringing up samples of coral
during the survey. Spratt takes care to assert that Criscuolo ‘is an experienced
Coral Fisher’.53 It is clear that the coral species Spratt was engaged to chart was
the ‘Red Coral of Commerce’, which had a commercial value. Black coral is not
mentioned at any stage and, probably, was not being sought.
In his findings, Spratt reported that, to grow, coral required a certain depth
(from 30 to 70 fathoms), a fixed bare rock-face or ledge on which to attach and
grow, and conditions of clean sea-water. Therefore, it was more likely to grow
on the West of the Maltese Islands, from the South East of Malta all the way
to the North point of Gozo (approximately from Wied iΩ-Ûurrieq, Malta to the

50 NAM, CSG 01, 8881/1862.

51 The original report and chart are to be found in NAM, CSG 01, 8926/1862. A copy is lodged in the United
Kingdom Hydrographic Office Archive (OD 244/OD MP1/3). Thanks to Mr Joe Bianco for indicating this
source.
52 The acknowledgement of receipt of the report, together with an expression of His Excellency’s gratitude, is
dated 31 July 1862. Cf. NAM, CSG 04, 8490/1862.
53 It seems that Criscuolo was not duly paid for his expenses and services and a court case ensued. The First
Hall of the Civil Court awarded him £28.12s ‘for expenses incurred by him and for his assistance on the
occasion of a survey ordered by Gov.n for the discovery of coral beds’. Cf. NAM, CSG 04, 10284/1863,
dated 3.viii.1863.
448 Francesca Balzan and Alan Deidun

Ìurdan lighthouse, Gozo). Actual discoveries of coral along this stretch were
indicated in the accompanying chart. Spratt went on to describe how coral ought
to be fished, and included a sketch of the recommended fishing apparatus. This
was a device in the shape of a St Andrew’s cross with nets suspended from it and
weighted at the centre (as opposed presumably to the method used earlier in the
month by the 60 boats which were trying to fish coral by throwing heavy weights
at it and bringing up the broken bits - an impractical method which led to damage
and unnecessary wastage and had first raised the alarm). Spratt indicated that a
coral ledge had been found recently ‘off Ras – el Newhela, or Ras el Hobs’ etc.
Apart from the known locations of coral to fishermen (Ras el Rahab, Fomm el
Reh, Ras el Hawieh in Malta and Ras el Hobs, S.W Gozo, Dweira/Fungus rock,
Chambray in Gozo), Spratt also found some other coral in the Filfla and Mta˙leb
area in Malta and Cape Demetri in Gozo. He concluded that, given the positive
results of his survey, ‘there is a promise of a very remunerative coral fishery, and
source of industry, of considerable commercial importance to the community and
Government’. He warned of the destruction and loss that could occur if not fished
correctly (probably in allusion to the occurrences earlier in the month) but the fact
that the coral was so close to the coast was a positive factor in both supervising
its correct fishing and in facilitating the actual fishing.
Enclosed in the same batch of documents is a letter, presumably in Spratt’s
own handwriting, dated 31 July 1862 and addressed to Brett. In this letter, Spratt
seems to have been worrying about the contents of the report submitted earlier,
wanting to emphasise certain points, clarify others and adding on some further
information. The letter starts by saying that he was too unwell to go directly to
the palace (he was probably suffering from malaria at the time54) and being about
to depart for the East, he asked whether any clarifications were needed as regards
the report and repeats where coral might possibly be found. He also – for the first
time – referred to ‘pale colored coral’ and said it
‘is also to be had as well as the dark red. For we got a fine piece of the pale
red coral from the abrupt face of the cliff under Suitakle (?) where one of my
Crosses as(?) thrown and which Mr C.scuol(?) was worth £4. I let him keep it, as
he fished it up ’.
He also said that, although he indicated 30 fathoms as the shallowest water
where coral could be found, it was possible that it would be present in shallower
water. He commented that
‘With such … craftsmen in gold working as the Maltese are, the coral
ornament(?) trade ought to be a source of … industry and local advantage. It is
I believe, a good deal of Coral can be found in the deeps of the Island at little
comparative labour and expense, when properly done, by proper apparatus and a

54 G. Zammit Maempel 1989, 40-41.

CORAL FISHING AND CORAL ARTEFACTS IN MALTA 449

little experience: Which many of the Maltese and Gozitan fishermen have already
had.’
Thereafter, the Superintendent of Ports together with the Superintendent of
Police seem to have been requested to provide a joint report about the Coral beds
found in the south.55 Dated 22 Aug 1862, the resulting report gives a detailed
account of previous discoveries of coral from circa 1782 onwards, based on
verbal testimonies of named persons. The account kicks off with a rather dramatic
incident that had become entrenched in popular lore by the time the report was
written:

‘…it is traditionally known and believed at Gozo, that about 80

years back nine boats from Trapani (in Sicily) fished Coral from
the Gozo Coast successfully, and that on their way back to Sicily
with such Coral they were captured by the Turks and conveyed
to Algiers, where they met with some Gozitans who were slaves
and who having been ransomed, returned to Gozo and related the
circumstance.’

It seems, therefore, that the documented presence of Sicilian fishermen

discussed above continued into the late eighteenth century and was still recalled
in popular memory. The involvement of Sicilian coral fishermen continued, as
the report recounts. Padrone Antonio Borg56 recalled that, 50 years earlier, his
father had accidentally fished up some coral with an implement called a Palamite
near ‘ta Rahep’, directly opposite ‘G˙ar il-Mit˙na’, and informed some Sicilian
coral fishermen who were heading to the African Coast about it. They struck a
deal with him to pay 40 dollars if he were to indicate where this coral might be
found. Much coral was subsequently found in the areas indicated by him.
Later on, circa 1844, another Gozitan fisherman57 brought up some coral with
his Nafsi fishing equipment in the same spot and sold it in Malta, whereupon a
Valletta trader by the name of Giuseppe, who sold coral from a shop in Strada
Levante close to Marina Gate, struck a similar deal with him. In 1860, another
fishermen said he also found coral in the same area but no activity seems to have
ensued.
In circa 1858, in the area of ‘Ras Enneuela’ under the Ta’ Çenç cliffs of Gozo,
‘fine’ coral was brought up in a net and, since that time, fishermen were bringing
up relatively large quantities of it, spearheaded by Antonio Borg.58 Michele
Criscuolo, referred to as ‘shopkeeper in this Island’, enters the scene on the 30

55 NAM, CSG 01, 9039/1862. Unfortunately the report is incomplete and has missing paper/s at the end.
56 Nicknamed ‘Ta Formica’. In Gozo, nicknames are important identifiers, almost more so than the actual
surname of a person.
57 By the name of Luigi Cachia, known as ‘Ecceccia’.
58 Nicknamed Palamita. Curiously the report first refers to ‘Palamita’ as an implement used in fishing.
450 Francesca Balzan and Alan Deidun

June 1862 when, together with Captain Agnello Pontillo, a Sicilian who was
well-experienced in coral fishing, and using Antonio Borg as a guide, they fished
‘very fine coral’ from this spot. They returned a few days later, better equipped
and fished ‘upwards of a cantar of coral’ until, on 11 July 1862, they moved to a
new spot on the same coast which had not been exploited before. Several other
fishermen were by then fishing coral. In the meantime, on 10 July 1862, two
Maltese boats, which included Sicilian crew, successfully fished coral along the
Ta’ Rahep coast, Gozo.
With all this activity going on, the report by Criscuolo seemed opportunely
timed to eliminate the competition by pointing to the fact that these other fishermen
were destroying the coral through their incompetent coral fishing techniques.59
The joint report went on to advise the Government how to go about licensing
coral fishery, firstly by making comparisons with the system adopted in Calle,
Algiers and in Sardinia whereby permission was granted to boats to fish for coral
against the payment of a tax. They made reference to a certain Signor Luigi
Aquilina, who was part of a French commission, to establish rules for coral fishing
and who was also apparently a merchant in Algiers.60 His opinion must have been
sought by the compilers of the report as they recounted that he told them about
how he paid 10 per cent of the ‘gross proceeds’ to the Ionian government when
he took on coral fishing in Corfu`. In 1858, the 11 Cantars of ‘indifferent’ coral
he managed to fish amounted to the value of 11,000 dollars. The report then
suggested either charging each boat an annual amount to permit coral-fishing
or else, and preferably, to divide the Maltese islands into three zones and to
concede a licence for a year (by means of a public competition) for each zone,
thus guaranteeing exclusive rights to exploit the coral in the zone allocated.
A second joint report, dated 18 September 1862, made recommendations on
the issuance of the licence to fish for coral.61 A yearly fee of £50 was mooted,
being sufficiently high to deter inexperienced fishermen from applying for a
licence. Other conditions considered were that the boat so licensed had to be
equipped with the proper fishing apparatus and that, while fishing, licensed boats
were to keep a distance of twenty yards between them. The pros and cons of the
two suggested systems of licensing seem to have been weighed and considered as
can be seen in the various notes and opinions in the document.

59 NAM, CSG 01, 8824/1862.

60 It must be noted that at the time Calle in Algiers was reputedly the most important location of coral fishing
on the African coast, controlled by the French, and to which several Italian coral fishermen were attracted,
raising the French flag on their boats. Cf. B. Liverino, Il Corallo esperienze e ricordi di un corallaro,
Analisi-Trend Bologna 1984, 79. This raises the question whether any Maltese were engaged in coral
fishing in Algiers. Luigi Aquilina is likely to have been Maltese and to have reached a position of some
distinction, as evidenced by the fact that he was appointed member of an advisory commission to the
French government for the establishment of rules regarding coral fishing.
61 NAM, CSG 01, 9159/1862.
CORAL FISHING AND CORAL ARTEFACTS IN MALTA 451

Ultimately, the system of

dividing the coast of the Islands
into three sections, each of which
would be let on lease for a year
to a successful bidder, was opted
for. An advertisement for tenders
was issued on 16 January 1863
(Fig.2).62 The tenderers were
Giosue Cafiero in association
with Settimio Caramia, who
offered £120 for all three sections
of the coast, in effect tendering
for a monopoly on the potential
coral grounds of Malta and Gozo.
Ignazio Marceca also tendered Fig. 2: Notice regarding tenders, NAM, CSG 01, 10271/1863.
for all three grounds, offering £75 Image courtesy of the National Archives of Malta
for all of them or significantly
less for each one. A. Bonnici Mompalao also made individual offers for the three
sections separately. Section no. 3 (the western coast of Gozo) must have been
considered the most valuable as both Bonnici Mompalao and Marceca offered
practically double what they had offered for the other sections. The covering
letter, dated 24 March 1863, to these documents addressed to Sir V. Houlton, Chief
Secretary to Government, by the Superintendent of Ports makes clear that Cafiero
and Caramia’s offer was ‘the most advantageous’. This was referred to the Crown
Advocate who did not disagree. It is, therefore, to be assumed that Cafiero and
Caramia were awarded the first tender for coral fishing on an exclusive basis for the
entire west coast of Malta (from Beng˙isa point to ‘Circheua’ point) and the western
coast of Gozo, for the duration of a year from 1 April 1863 until 31 March 1864.63
The years following this ‘discovery’ still need to be studied in greater detail.
However, the promise of a coral industry which would be so beneficial to commerce
and industry, as optimistically hoped for by the Chamber of Commerce on the
initial discovery of the coral, seems never to have been realized. Whether this was

62 NAM, CSG 01, 10271/1863.

63 All documents referred to regarding this tender are to be found in NAM, CSG 01, 10271/1863. According
to the Oil Exploration Division Progress Report which relates to a Coral Project which was undertaken in
1983, ‘A coral reef discovered in 1862 between Malta and Gozo in 60 fathoms of water about one-fourth of
a mile off Gozo led to its being exploited under a Government exclusive Licence to Michele Crescuolo, a
Neapolitan whose descendants are currently employed in fashioning decorative pieces. Another discovery
in the following year in Ìnejna Bay was treated similarly. There is documentary evidence that at least up to
the first years of this century coral was still extracted, if not worked, in Malta.’ Cf. Ministry for Resources
and Rural Affairs Archives (MRRAA), Oil Exploration Progress Report, dd. 1/6/83, Appendix 2, compiled
by Roger Scotto.
452 Francesca Balzan and Alan Deidun

due to the fact that the coral proved too difficult to fish or that it was of insufficient
quality or quantity to support a thriving industry is yet to be determined. One fact
is certain and that is the great blow dealt to the coral industry in the Mediterranean
by the discovery of the extensive Sciacca (Sicily) coral bank in 1875, followed
by discoveries of a second and third bank in 1878 and 1880.64 This flooded the
market with coral, with the consequent collapse in the price of coral, effectively
rendering any further fishing in Maltese waters uneconomic.65
Later on, the ebb and flow of requests to fish coral must naturally have
been dependent on the demand generated primarily by the jewellery industry.66
Its decorative appeal was not, however, restricted only to its use in personal
adornment but it was also used as a wall decoration. Pieces of coral are used in
profusion as an element of the mosaic decorating the interior of the Nymphaeum
at the Argotti Gardens, Floriana. A church at Tas-Sil© is also reportedly decorated
with coral in a similar manner.67
The sporadic requests for permission to fish coral in Maltese territorial
waters continued well into the twentieth century, mostly emanating from Italian
individuals or companies based in Sicily and Naples (where coral working
industries flourished) and Greece. These requests were generally turned down by
the Maltese authorities.68
In 1983, a licence was granted by Maltese authorities to the Italian company
Coralma S.r.l. to extensively survey Maltese waters for the presence of C.
rubrum.69 Twenty different locations, extending throughout the twelve-nautical-
mile territorial waters of the Maltese Islands were sampled, by dividing the same
marine area in ten different zones. The long-term intention was to set up a coral
working company in Malta, training and employing a number of artisans in the art

64 Liverino, 79 et. seq.

65 By 1886, it seems that the extraction of coral had been completely shelved: ‘A few years back the discovery
of a coral bank in the vicinity of Gozo was reported; so far, however, nothing further has been heard of its
existence, as possibly the profit that could be derived from it would not compensate for the heavy outlay
required for its extraction.’ Cf. N. Zammit, Malta and its Industries, London 1886, 30. We are grateful to
Dr Albert Ganado for this reference.
66 It must be recalled, however, that coral was collected in itself as a curiosity and would, in the past, have
also been included in its natural form in cabinets of curiosities and collections of minerals and specimens
collected from nature. See footnote on G.F. Abela’s cabinet of curiosities supra. The Museum Annual
Report for 1924-25 lists the following donation: ‘A fine collection of exotic and a few local species of
corals, also a few local sponges, formerly belonging to the late Chev. G. Gollcher very kindly presented
also by Madam Gollcher’. The Gollcher family operated a successful ship-owning business in Malta, so it
could be that the interest in marine species emerged from their interest in the marine environment.
67 For information about the coral used in the decoration of the Nymphaeum and reference to the church at
Tas-Sil©, see I. Ross, The Mosaic decoration at the Nymphaeum, Argotti Gardens: condition assessment
and conservation strategy, unpublished B.Cons. (Hons) thesis, University of Malta 2006.
68 MRRAA, Coral Correspondence.
69 The information contained in this and the following page forms part of a paper by A. Deidun et al. entitled
‘Record of the presence of black coral in the Maltese Islands, and description of precious coral fishing
activities’, in press.
CORAL FISHING AND CORAL ARTEFACTS IN MALTA 453

of working coral for use in jewellery.70 The enterprise was largely unsuccessful,
since just three kilos of ‘low-quality’ Corallium rubrum was officially recorded.
In 1984, a Maltese parastatal company, the Mediterranean Coral Fishing
Company, was instituted with the sole objective of identifying and harvesting
precious coral populations in the Mediterranean, but which yielded the only
quantitative information about shallow-water precious coral populations in
Maltese waters.71 The company was initially set up with an investment of the
equivalent of 250,000 euro and had at its disposal two Italian boats. Maltese
fishermen were commissioned at an attractive rate of 165 euro per week.72
An analysis of this data indicates that the C. rubrum catch landed from Maltese
near-shore waters during 1984-85 and 1986-87 amounted to almost 1.5% of the
total biomass of the 44.3 tons and 40.4 tons recorded for the whole Mediterranean
for these two periods respectively.73 White and orange coral were also reportedly
fished in this period. The ‘orange’ coral recorded may either be a variant of C.
rubrum or the dead coral. Mediterranean white coral is not considered precious.
During the operating period of the coral-harvesting company (1984-1987),
Maltese near-shore waters were surveyed primarily by means of SCUBA divers
using helium-based breathing gas mix, ROV (remote operating vehicles operated
from a modified French navy vessel) and manned submersible (<10m in length,
manned by three individuals, and fitted with robotic arms for collection of coral
specimens), which was occasionally hired for 150,000 euro per week from
offshore oil companies.74
This fishery also landed 100 kg of black coral (Antipataria), which was recorded
at that time as Antipathes spp., revealing a limited effort being invested in the
taxonomic identification of the species. To date, very few black coral specimens
and fragments retrieved from the company’s operations can be located, and it is
not clear if the fishery exploited one or several species. One such erect, branching
specimen, identified as Leopathes Glaberrima75, and having a height of 40 cm, is
in the reserve collection of the Natural History Museum, Mdina.
Most of the recorded fishing locations for the precious coral species coincide
with the locations indicated by Captain Spratt’s survey in 1862. One other record
refers to C. rubrum documented by a SCUBA diver at a depth of circa 20 metres
in a partially submerged cavern, located a few hundred metres to the north of Ras
in-Newwiela in Gozo76 and this might constitute one of the shallowest records

70 Malta Development Corporation letter granting approval to Luigi D’Amato of Fratelli D’Amato Srl of
Naples, for Coralma to research for coral in Maltese waters etc. dd. 24/3/1983.
71 See the front page report ‘Expensive coral ‘find’ in Maltese waters’, The Times (of Malta), 27.xii.1984.
72 MRRAA; Frank Abela, personal communication Dec 2009.
73 http://www.fao.org/fishery/statistics/software/fishstat/en
74 Roger Scotto, personal communication, November 2009.
75 A. Deidun et. al., in press.
76 Official from AquaBiotech Malta, personal communication, January 2010.
 454 Francesca Balzan and Alan Deidun

of C. rubrum in Maltese near-shore waters. While red coral was mainly bought
by the industry in Torre del Greco,77 according to official Mediterranean Coral
Fishing Company documents, black coral jewellery derived from Maltese stocks
was mainly sold to the German market, whilst the largest demand for local red
coral artefacts came from Britain. The former fetched lower prices and was more
time-consuming to sculpt. In addition, whilst 75% of the biomass of precious red
coral was wasted during the sculpting phase, this statistic was even higher for
the black coral species due to its softer skeleton that makes it less congenial for
machine-mediated processing and sculpting. The company purchased a single
coral-fashioning machine from Germany, worth 10,000 euro, and even developed
a protocol for the polishing of precious red coral through the adaptation of
equipment normally used in the manufacture of spectacles and through the use of
tumblers and mud.78
Certainly the most remarkable aspect of this analysis is the discovery of the
only known past black coral fishery in the Mediterranean. This is even more
surprising given the fact that the presence of this genus has not been described in
Maltese waters, apart from the solitary reference in de Soldanis. Unfortunately,
the specimens available have lost their soft tissue by natural abrasion, which
are required for reliable identification.79 However, the branching pattern80 of the
larger specimen at the Mdina Natural History Museum suggests that it might
be a specimen of Leiopathes glaberrima, whose taxonomic identity was further
confirmed through an analysis of microscopic spines from smaller fragments of
the species.
If future surveys confirm the presence of L. glaberrima in Maltese waters,
it would be of considerable implications for conservation, as this species is
supposed to reach a lifespan of several decades or centuries,81 maybe even more
than 2000 years.82

77 G. Tescione, Il corallo nella storia e nell’arte, Montanino Editore, Napoli 1965.

78 Noel Zarb Adami (personal communication, Nov 2009).
79 D. Opresko, Revision of the Antipatharia Part. I. Establishment of a new family Myriopathidae. Zool. Med.
Leiden 75, 2001, 343-370.
80 D. Opresko and G. Försterra, Chapter ‘Antipatharia’ in the reference work Das Mittelmeer, Ed.: Dr. Robert
Hofrichter, Spektrum Verlag 2003.
81 B. Williams, M.J. Risk, S.W. Ross, & K.J. Sulak, ‘Deep-water antipatharians:Proxies of environmental
change’, in Geology 34, 2009, 773-776 .
82 E.B. Roark, T.P. Guilderson, R.B. Dunbar & B.L. Ingram, ‘Radiocarbon-Based ages and growth rates of
Hawaiian deep-sea corals’, in Marine Ecology Progress Series 327, 2006, 1-14.

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