bits and pieces – from discarded broken bricks and rusty galvanized iron to timber poles cut from the bush. Additional to the market garden was the dairy and poultry farm with the produce being sold through the local markets. The Department of the Army took an interest and allowed a skilled joiner and cabinetmaker, Phil Taffe to help with the project. Phil, although almost blind, worked on the new buildings and helped make some of the refectory tables, stools, carved chairs and other furniture that can be seen in the Great Hall today. After the war, work on the Great Hall and other buildings resumed. The slate floor in the hall and the wooden floors above were finally put in place. Students were given the task of carving the corbels and other embellishments around the windows and doors as part of their training. Some of the stonework came from Wilson Hall at the University of Melbourne, which had been badly damaged by fire in 1952. Local tradesmen joined the team, as did some new students and aspiring artists fresh back from the horrors of the war, like Clifton Pugh, Gordon Ford and Joe Hannan and tradesmen Horry Judd, Bill Floyd, Wallt Stephens, Ken Howard, plus several refugees from Europe and Asia. Recent history and today In 1975, Montsalvat became a Charitable Trust with Jorgensen's youngest son Sigmund as the chairman of the Trust and its administrator. In 1989 the work at Montsalvat was recognised by the Victorian Government when the property was placed on Heritage Victoria's Register, soon followed by a classification by the National Trust of Victoria. In October 1998 the Australian Heritage Commission included Montsalvat on the Australian Register of National Estate. (No. 100160) The Shire of Nillumbik council has also listed the property as a Heritage Place. In 1996 the red brick barn/workshop/studio towards the entrance was subjected to arson and burnt down. It was subsequently rebuilt and now forms the main entrance and exhibition space known as the Barn Gallery. This is now where the majority of exhibitions and performances are held today. In 2006, an unpaid tax debt forced the current administration to sell land in nearby Christmas Hills after a bitter fight with a Victorian State Government appointed administrator. Montsalvat today is a place where emerging and established artists can present and perform their work. Its visual features are enjoyed by tourists from around