The U.S. Embassy in Manila has come to the aid of "blistered and crackled" paintings made by the foremost Filipino artist in the lobby of the Philippine General Hospital, the country's first public hospital.

Willie Estonato, a painting conservator from the National Museum said, the murals created by Carlos "Botong" Francisco in 1953, were already on the brink of collapsing.

Thanks to a $39,000-grant from U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney's fund for cultural preservation, the paintings, considered a national treasure, are now undergoing their third restoration.

Estonato described the state of the painting, "They were very weak, very deteriorated. If nobody noticed it, they will collapse sooner or later."

The paintings depict the different periods in the history of Philippine Medicine, from the pre-colonial period, through the Spanish, American and modern era. Kenney said the embassy decided to fund the restoration of the paintings because it pictures a "great partnership" between Manila and Washington.

"This one's particularly special - a national artist, a historic building ... one that provides great service to the people," Kenney said.

Mural No. 3 depicts foreign doctors vaccinating Filipinos during the American colonial period.

The U.S. government has already earmarked over $300,000 over the last five years for cultural projects in the Philippines.

Kenney also said that the embassy would soon finance conservation efforts on the tourist-famous Banawe rice terraces. UNESCO has threatened to strike out the rice fields carved out of mountainsides from its list of the world's wonders unless rehabilitation efforts are undertaken soon.