On the occasion of the 30th Anniversary of its founding, NSTF is embarking on a Restoration and Education Project between January and July 2008. The Foundation decided to celebrate this milestone anniversary by commissioning the restoration of Mattia Preti’s masterpiece, "The Martyrdom of St. Catherine". In 1659 Mattia Preti donated this piece to the knights of the Italian langue to be placed as an altarpiece at the Church of St. Catherine, adjoining the Auberge d’Italie in Valletta. The highly acclaimed firm ‘Sante Guido Restauro e Conservazione di Opere d’Arte’ under the direction of Sante Guido and Giuseppe Mantella has been in the restoration business since 1982 and will be responsible for the restoration.
As it executes this restoration project, NSTF is also undertaking an extensive educational programme. This includes public seminars by Italian and Maltese experts, workshops for primary and secondary school children and scholarships in restoration in Malta and Italy.
Five scholarships were offered to Maltese young people aged 16-23 years interested in pursuing a career in restoration. The scholarships provide an opportunity for candidates to come face-to-face with the art of restoration, the techniques that it involves and to have a hands-on experience so as to enable them to fruitfully assess their disposition towards a career in restoration. Thereafter NSTF offers up to 2 scholarships to the most promising candidates to be availed of in Rome under the direction of the firm "Sante Guido Restauro e Conservazione".