Mdina: MRA-MLT-Mdi002

Type Sample Item

Sample ID: MRA-MLT-Mdi002

Sample Material Type: Mural painting

Sample Sub-type: fragment

Dimensions (cm)

Length: 1

Width: 0.6

Height: 0.2

Notes: left fragment

Length: 0.7

Width: 0.5

Height: 0.2

Notes: right fragment on the top

Weight

weight value (g): 0.45

Notes: all fragments together

Geographic Location

Country: Malta

Place: Mdina

Site/monument: Malta (MLT)
Mdina
Mdina Cathedral

Historical note about the site/monument: The cathedral of Saint Paul in Mdina, Malta, is the church of the archdiocese of Malta dedicated to St. Paul the Apostle. Founded in the 12^th century, the cathedral was probably rebuilt on a pre-existing building. The local tradition says that this premise was a palace owned by St. Publius, the local Roman governor who hosted Paul the Apostle after his shipwreck in the island and, even if there is no actual proof of the fact, evidences of a Roman domus in the crypt are noticeable. The first cathedral could have been dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary but unfortunately, the original building was completely erased away from a massive earthquake in 1693 that hit both Sicily and Malta and that is therefore known as "Sicily earthquake". The new cathedral was rebuilt with the remains of the earlier, with a complete restyling guided by the Maltese architect Lorenzo Gafà, who opted for Baroque design. The cathedral has got Latin cross plan, with the main nave divided from the two side naves, or aisles, through two arcades and two side chapels. The ceiling is vaulted, and its surface was covered with fresco paintings featuring the life of St. Paul (late 18^th century) that went destroyed with another later earthquake (1856). Later, some artefacts of the church were re-utilized to create new sacred furnishings: the cathedral’s main door, the late Gothic-Renaissance baptismal font and numerous paintings from Sicilian and other Italian painters. Part of the rock furniture was made by re-utilising Roman sites of Melite and Carthage. Part of the collection is nowadays store in the Cathedral Museum, that includes also some Albrecht Dürer’s woodcuttings.

Further reading:
De Lucca, Denis (1979). "Mdina: the Cathedral area". Heritage: An Encyclopedia of Maltese Culture and Civilization. Santa Venera: Midsea Books Ltd. 1: 121–124.
Brincat, Joseph M. (1995). Malta 870–1054 Al-Himyari's Account and its Linguistic Implications. Valletta: Said International.