FONDAZZJONI PATRIMONJU MALTI
MISSION STATEMENT Our mission is to collect and disseminate information, and to assist with research into the culture and historic heritage of Malta ~ to organize in Malta and overseas, independently or with others, exhibitions, seminars and other activities with the aim of promoting and spreading knowledge of the cultural heritage of Malta ~ to produce publications, catalogues, books, documents and other material that reflect the aim of our Foundation.
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Editorial
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In the second instalment of a series exploring the life, thought, and creations of selected twentiethcentury Maltese artists, Charles Swain reviews some of the works of a master watercolourist observing Malta at the cusp of change
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Aviation in Malta: The First Three Decades
Joseph Galea Debono reviews the early history of flight in Maltese airspace, recounting successful episodes to tragic incidents
Nicholas De Gaetano makes a case for the re-identification of an anonymous ‘Portrait of a Maltese Gentleman’, held at the Alte Pinakothek in Munich, as an official portrait of Grand Master de Rohan by Antoine Favray
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Nicoline Sagona
Christian Attard
The Cover
Bookshelf
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Cultural Review Cecilia Xuereb
Early Stereoscopic Photographs of Malta
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Calendar Highlights
Giovanni Bonello speculates about the introduction and popularity of a photographic wonder: threedimensional imagery in Victorian Malta
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My Favourite Object Patrick Galea
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On a newly discovered manuscript of the Codice del Sacro Militare Ordine Gerosolimitano
A Marble Altar for the Monastery of St Peter in Mdina
Petra Caruana Dingli identifies and investigates the patronage of the women behind the prestigious commission of a work of high Baroque splendour
Stephen Degiorgio and Valeria Vanesio
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Vincenzo Bonello (1891–1969): The Pioneer of Fine Arts in Malta Theresa Vella
Hand-coloured map based on Antonino Saliba’s Mappa Mundi (1582), issued by Ambrosius Schevenhuyse, printed in Haarlem, c.1700. Destined for display at the Gozo Museum. (Courtesy of Heritage Malta, Inv. No.: G/PPD/2020/05)
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84· Summer 2022 · Vol. XXVIII, No. 3
Giuseppe Arcidiacono (1908–1997): The Soul of Malta Captured in Watercolour
Between Copies and Authentic Gifts: An Official Portait of Grand Master de Rohan by Antoine Favray
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Contents
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from the Editor
There is something very singular about this issue and about this time: we are inviting our readers to celebrate with us what we are unashamedly proud of, the existence of Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti for thirty years and its commitment to the nation’s cultural heritage, made possible through the unflagging input of its founders, its volunteers, its benefactors, its sponsors, its contributors, and supporters. The special supplement aims to be a memorial to a vision and to those who realised it. See in it a tangible token of gratitude to you all who helped morph the ambitious dream we had thirty years ago into a stimulating reality. Believe us, it has not always been easy. Too many just don’t care, and don’t care to hide it. A former Chief Justice recently denounced the apathy and epic absence of commitment of the great majority of University students where national issues are concerned—their indifference, their lethargy in upholding values of good governance, of protection of the natural and cultural environment—and this in what claims to be the highest seat of learning where intellectual inquisitiveness, challenge to dogma, and going against the tide should be the rule. Vibrant NGOs mostly keep those flames alive. Thank providence for small mercies. And now, for some updates from our end: preparations for Patrimonju’s next big exhibition are in full swing. In Search of Line promises to live up to Patrimoju’s mission statement: to make the general public share in the emotion of intimacy with treasures usually hidden in non-public collections. The response of private lenders has proved overwhelming, and we are now facing the embarrassment of refusing the surplus. Photography of the objects proceeds briskly, as also the production of the catalogue which will chaperone the exhibition. Structural work also progresses in what soon will be our new premises on St Paul’s Street, Valletta, which will house the administration offices and display spaces for permanent—the Victor Pasmore Foundation collection—and temporary exhibitions. Keeping fingers crossed these preparations should reach their climax by Spring 2023. The Victor Pasmore Gallery will now be enhanced by a new website, to coincide with its relocation to our new premises in Valletta. On the publishing front, we are delighted to announce a new partnership with Kite Group, after a long and fruitful alliance with Midsea Books which yielded memorable feats of periodical and stand-alone publishing in trying times—Covid lockdowns, paper shortages, and other adversities. This issue of Treasures of Malta, packaged with the supplement recounting thirty years of Patrimonju history—and publishing—is a fitting conclusion to our longstanding relationship with Midsea Books. Meanwhile, our next ambitious project will see the light under the joint guardianship of Patrimonju with Kite: a volume on cultural collecting at the times of the Order of St John, by Dr Theresa Vella, also well in hand with an early 2023 launch estimate. After the disrupting Covid-19 break, Palazzo Falson has re-introduced its overseas tours project for its Friends. This year’s venue targets the known and the hidden wonders of Palermo and its environs. A rich and variegated former capital of a kingdom, Palermo should prove of extraordinary interest to visitors from Malta as the histories of the two, for many centuries, developed in parallel or overlapped. Usually, these wondrously organised tours attract more bookings than the schedule allows, and we rather doubt that they will be any fewer this time round. Recently, this journal issued a call for papers. We are constantly looking for new material, new authors, and fresh approaches. Young and emerging researchers (though not only) are warmly encouraged to share papers with our readers. We always welcome original, thought-provoking articles on man-made heritage with a connection to Maltese cultural history. The production of our podcast Treasures from Malta has now reached its fourth and final season. Under the benign, engaging, and challenging Francesca Balzan, this series has been a success story, attracting more attention than we had allowed for. It has given a voice and an audience to many a protagonist in Malta’s cultural scene, exposing in equal measure the achievements and the obstacles met by many who, over the past years, have had at heart the dissemination of a passion for heritage ... just like us.
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Treasures of Malta
is published three times a year, at Christmas, Easter and in the Summer General Editor: Giovanni Bonello Senior Editor: Giulia Privitelli Creative Director: Michael Lowell Publisher / Editorial Office Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti 63, Old Mint Street, Valletta VLT 1518, Malta tel: (356) 21228145 / (356) 21231515 email: giovannibonello@patrimonju.org / info@patrimonju.org / publish@patrimonju.org www.patrimonju.org Production, Sales, Subscriptions and Marketing Midsea Books Ltd Carmelites Street, Sta Venera HMR 1724, Malta tel: (356) 21497046 email: admin@midseabooks.com Printer Gutenberg Press Ltd, Gudja Road, Tarxien, GXQ 2902, Malta Advertising M.M. Enterprises 27 Magazines Street, Mdina MDN 1201, Malta tel: (356) 21456625 email: rachellemanduca@hotmail.com; manduca@onvol.net © Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti
All material, pictorial and/or editorial, published in Treasures of Malta is the property of the respective author and/or photographer. Reproduction without the necessary permission in writing from the rightful owner is strictly prohibited.
issn 1028-3013
Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti VO/1762
Conseil d’Honneur His Excellency the President, Dr George Vella The Hon. Prime Minister, Dr Robert Abela His Grace the Archbishop, Mgr Charles J. Scicluna Hon. President The Hon. Dr Owen Bonnici Minister for National Heritage, the Arts, and Local Government Hon. Life Founder President Dr Michael Frendo Life Founder Members Rita Flamini, the late Maurice de Giorgio Founder Members John Lowell, the late John Manduca Board of Governors Joseph Grioli, Chairman Giovanni Bonello, Deputy Chairman Joseph V. Bannister Nicholas de Piro Pascal A. Demajo Max Ganado Michael Grech Matthew von Brockdorff Michael Lowell, Chief Executive Officer Francesca Balzan, Senior Executive
FONDAZZJONI PATRIMONJU MALTI
The Chairman and Board of Governors of Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti would like to thank the following donors for their support
ASSOCIATES
BENEFACTORS
THE MARTIN LAING FOUNDATION
MR JEAN CLAUDE GANDUR
CORPORATE SUPPORTERS
A full list of Personal and Corporate Patrons may be found on the following page
FONDAZZJONI PATRIMONJU MALTI
The Chairman and Board of Governors of Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti would like to thank the following donors for their support
PERSONAL SUPPORTERS Mr & Mrs Andrew Hamish Forsyth
PATRONS PERSONAL Simon Abrahams & Francesca Del Rio Mr & Mrs Neville Agius Baroness Apap Bologna Sceberras D’Amico lnguanez Simon & Annabelle Ellul Sullivan Mrs Janatha Stubbs Mr Andrew Norman Vincenti
CORPORATE Atlas Insurance – Mr Matthew von Brockdorff CamilleriParis Mode – Mr Paul Camilleri Curmi & Partners Ltd – Mr David Curmi Eden Leisure Group – Mr Ian De Cesare Eyetech Ltd – Mr Patrick Cutajar Forestals Group of Companies – Mr Tancred Tabone GasanMamo Insurance Ltd – Mr Julian Mamo Gianpula – Dr Roger de Giorgio Good Earth Distributors Ltd – Mr Matthew de Giorgio GVZH Advocates – Dr Albert Grech IIG Bank (Malta) Ltd – Mr Raymond Busuttil Joinwell – Mr Sebastian de Giorgio Lombard Bank Malta plc – Mr Joseph Said Mapfre Middlesea plc – Mr Martin Galea
Miller Distributors Ltd – Mr Malcolm G. Miller O. F. Gollcher and Sons Ltd – Mr Karl Gollcher PwC – Mr David Valencia RiskCap International Ltd – Dr Paul Magro Rizzo, Farrugia & Co. (Stockbrokers) Ltd – Mr Vincent J. Rizzo Rock Trustees Ltd – Mrs Joanna Agius Satariano – Ms Natasha Chapelle Paleologo Shireburn Software Limited – Ms Yasmin de Giorgio Sigma Coatings (Malta) Ltd – Mr Anthony Critien The Alfred Mizzi Foundation – Mr Julian Sammut Tug Malta Ltd – Mr John E. Sullivan Virtù Steamship Co. Ltd – Mr Charles A. Portelli Water Services Corporation – Mr Ivan Falzon
(As at time of going to press)
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Fig. 1 Giuseppe Arcidiacono, ‘A Village Scene’ (detail), oils on canvas, signed and dated 1950. (Private Collection, Malta)
Giuseppe Arcidiacono (1908–1997) The Soul of Malta Captured in Watercolour
In the second instalment of a series exploring the life, thought, and creations of selected twentieth-century Maltese artists, Charles Swain reviews some of the works of a master watercolourist observing Malta at the cusp of change
Giuseppe Arcidiacono hails from a family of furniture-makers. Santo, his father, was from Riposto, on the eastern coast of Sicily. He married Ester Barbuto who was from Catanzaro, Calabria, and the couple settled in Malta in 1908 when he was twenty-eight years old. Santo’s father, Giuseppe Snr, had trained him in woodworks and this prompted him to open a joinery shop in Strada Reale, Ħamrun. Later, he moved his business to new premises in Strada San Paolo in Valletta. Giuseppe, his eldest son, was born on 31 October 1908, a few months after the couple had settled in Malta. Arcidiacono never studied abroad, but his innate talent as an artist was recognised by his teachers at the Malta School of Art and, later, by the art critics who scrutinised his paintings. He was a prolific painter with a remarkably long artistic career focussed on landscape painting. His intuition and verve led him to capture the soul of Malta in watercolour at a time when its very essence had started to be challenged by relentless industrialisation. Until recently,
Charles Swain is a retired Consultant in general and plastic surgery. After dedicating four decades to the practice of surgery he ventured into the world of humanities by enrolling as a regular student in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Malta in 2013. The theme of his B.A. (Hons) dissertation was breast iconography, while his M.A. dissertation focussed on the life and works of Giuseppe Arcidiacono.
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Fig. 2-3 Giuseppe Arcidiacono, varnished watercolour of a garden with buildings in the background, signed and dated ‘1933 Malta’. (Private Collection, Malta); Giuseppe Arcidiacono, varnished watercolour of a bay with boats, signed and dated ‘1933 Malta.’ (Private Collection, Malta)
Arcidiacono’s work remained largely undocumented and bound to be forgotten as very few of his paintings form part of the national or other public collections. When the art-conscious public in Malta got to know of my search for Arcidiacono’s work, the doors of more than fifty households opened up to reveal a wealth of his paintings in private collections. This review is based on my personal assessment of his oeuvre and on brief articles published in local newspapers and magazines by art connoisseurs who saw his work in a number of personal and collective exhibitions held in Malta over the years. Arcidiacono established an enduring friendship with contemporary students during his days at the Malta School of Art. Together with Esprit Barthet (1918–1999), Toussaint Busuttil (1912–1994) and Willie Apap (1918– 1970), he often used to wake up early in the morning to paint en plein air in the countryside around Sa Maison, Birkirkara Valley, Mosta, and at San Anton Gardens. Arcidiacono had, by then, mastered joinery in his father’s workshop and had presented Barthet with a travelling paintbox to use on these occasions. He would also supply pieces of plywood on which to paint and, often, would provide means of transport as he was the only one in the group to own a car. The 1930s witnessed the winds of war blowing again over Malta, gradually sweeping away Italian influence in all spheres of Maltese society and replacing it with a culture that reflected British ideology. Despite the animosity which filtered down to the art circles in Malta, dominated as it was by Italian sympathisers, there was a surprising degree of cooperation between the British colonial rulers and Maltese artists. Lady Janet Campbell, the wife of General Sir David Campbell who served as Governor between 1931 and 1936, patronised the exhibitions of the Malta Art Amateur Association and is recorded
buying one of Arcidiacono’s paintings at the May 1933 exhibition. Soon after, Arcidiacono was invited to join an outdoor sketching party led by Sir William Alison Russell (1875–1948), a Scottish lawyer who had a distinguished career in the British colonial legal service. Apart from being a renowned legislator and an enthusiastic musician, Russell was an amateur painter in watercolour. He had formed the Sketch Club together with another lawyer, Colonel C.H. Pringle, and other members of the British forces and colonial service who were living in Malta at the time.1 Giuseppe was the only member of the Arcidiacono clan who was not deported to Italy or Egypt at the start of the Second World War. He had married Erminia Gauci and their first son, Marco, was born on 18 June 1940 in ĦażŻebbuġ. Giuseppe had relocated his family to this village to avoid the bombing around Msida and the inner harbour area. He used to observe the incoming squadrons of German and Italian bombers from his rooftop and sketch the aftermaths of the air raids. On one occasion, he was arrested on suspicion of spying and was only released from the Ħaż-Żebbuġ police station on the condition that he would refrain from venturing on the roof of his house again and graphically recording the proceedings during alien bombing. This was not the only time that he was kept under surveillance during the war. On the few occasions that he ventured into Valletta to sketch on site he would be followed by military police whose presence he could only detect from their cigarette smoke as they remained concealed. Arcidiacono’s passion for outdoor painting persisted throughout his long career. He went out on painting excursions with younger enthusiasts, including John Martin Borg and Debbie Caruana Dingli. Borg recalls how Arcidiacono would often start a painting by thoroughly wetting the paper and then boldly splashing watercolour
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Fig. 1 Cobham’s flying boat in distress at Kalafrana. (Courtesy of the Giovanni Bonello Collection)
Aviation in Malta The First Three Decades
Joseph Galea Debono reviews the early history of flight in Maltese airspace, recounting successful episodes to tragic incidents
The usual circle of onlookers at the Lower Barrakka Gardens on 13 February 1915 were bemused by a strange looking sight unfolding in Bighi Bay across the Grand Harbour. An unusually shaped vessel with a crane on its long foredeck appeared to be unloading a hitherto unseen contraption into the water. Soon, this lay floating alongside the ship and a roar of an engine from the machine accompanied the slow movement of the contraption. It picked up speed and was seen to lift off the waves and head in the direction of the breakwater to the amazement of all those ashore (Fig. 4-5).1 It was the first recorded flight of a seaplane launched from H.M.S. Ark Royal in Maltese waters. The erratic flight lasted for some fifteen minutes and ended very hastily owing to a faulty aileron control.
Joseph Galea Debono is a retired judge. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree ‘cum laude’ in Modern European and Maltese History, English and Italian Literature, and, later, as Doctor of Laws from the Royal University of Malta. He chaired the Malta National Tourism Organisation for four years. He has always had an interest in Maltese military history and aviation, publishing features on these subjects in local and international media platforms.
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opposite: Fig. 2-3 Seaplane base at Kalafrana. (Courtesy of the Giovanni Bonello Collection) from top: Fig. 4-7 H.M.S. Ark Royal. (Source: Said, Broken Wings, 2018); Strange contraption, a Short Admirality Type 135. (Source: Said, Broken Wings, 2018); The Handley Page V/1500 Bomber. (Source: Said, Broken Wings, 2018); The first Felixtowe F.2 assembled at the Malta Dockyard takes to the water. (Source: Mizzi & Vella, Malta at War, 2001)
The following day, a second attempt was made which sadly ended with a bad accident after five minutes. Powered flight had come to Malta just twelve years after the first flight by the Wright brothers. The Royal Navy had great hopes that aircraft could be put to very good use for maritime reconnaissance and hunting for submarines; they converted Ark Royal (Fig. 4) into an aircraft carrier with a handful of aircraft on board for use in the Mediterranean basin. This somewhat inauspicious beginning was the kick-start of the extensive use of these Islands by the Royal Navy, and what later became the Royal Air Force (RAF) in 1918. That same year a new seaplane base was planned at Kalafrana on the south-west side of Marsaxlokk Bay, which was sheltered from the strong north-westerly wind. By July 1916, five Curtiss America flying boats took up station there.2 These were followed by other types of aircraft as the war wore on. The need for this seaplane base came from the threat posed by German and Austrian submarines roving through the Mediterranean Sea, causing havoc to warships and commercial traffic belonging to the Allied forces. The order of battle at Kalafrana was No. 267 (Seaplane) Squadron equipped with F2A flying boats and No. 268 (Seaplane) Squadron flying Short Sunbeam 320 seaplanes. By 1918, the base included a slipway and quay, workshops, and administrative buildings (Fig. 2-3, 8).3 A number of land-based biplane fighters were also sent to Malta in April 1918, and, in the absence of an aerodrome on land, were temporarily based in the grounds of the Marsa racecourse. This was in response to the discovery that a Zeppelin airship had been sent to bomb Malta which, however, got lost on its way and crashed. These aircraft arrived in crates and were locally assembled by RAF personnel on site. Two DH.9 aircraft were detailed to investigate submarine sighting reports on those days when
rough seas made it impossible for seaplanes to take off. On 21 December 1918, a much larger aircraft also landed at Marsa. It was a Handley Page V/1500 bomber from Norfolk on its way to India via Rome, leaving the next day for Egypt (Fig. 6).4 Meanwhile, Felixstowe F.2 flying boats were being assembled at the dockyard from components sent out from Great Britain and others manufactured locally.5 These were used for maritime reconnaissance (Fig. 7).
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Vincenzo Bonello (1891–1969) The Pioneer of Fine Arts in Malta
Theresa Vella
Vincenzo Bonello pioneered the professionalisation of many roles: art historian, curator, restorer, teacher, designer, architectural designer, while researching and writing throughout his life.1 The bar he raised was set at a high mark, one which today’s practitioners in Malta still aim to reach, in emulating his life’s work. Was Bonello an exceptional man—in his knowledge of art history, his talent for architectural design, his aptitude for teaching, and his pioneering approach to restoration—for his times? If we look at Bonello’s world as one defined by shared cultural and artistic traits, his had a wide geographical spread which encompassed the Latin continent. Italy was where he sought his peers in museums and academia, and found them ready to interact with him in Malta, particularly in exchanging views on Caravaggio, Mattia Preti, and other Baroque artists. Yet, within the history of art and architecture in Malta alone, Bonello stands out like a singular figure. It would be hard to think of another who, in the early twentieth century, merged talent and intellect into a new profession—that of Inspector, later Curator of Fine Arts. A comparable multitasker was Dr Themistocles Zammit, however, the latter had the prior training of a medic and carried the authority which came with that profession before he turned his scientific skills to evidence-based archaeology. Conversely, was it the singularity of the new, national role of Curator of Fine Arts, briefed to defend and promote the nation’s centuries-old cultural history as his professional duty, which rendered Bonello vulnerable to political machinations? In gathering the material evidence of paintings by Old Masters—Italian, Flemish, French, Spanish—Bonello could not but point very eloquently to the culturally rich Baroque past of Malta, which was far more splendid than anything known from its recent British colonial history. When Bonello was entrusted with setting up and heading the Fine Arts Section of the National Museum,
he had the added responsibility of defining the role of Curator—a responsibility which came with very high stakes at a time when the cultural identity of the Maltese people was fast becoming an ideological battleground. How did Bonello rise to the onerous task? Vincenzo Bonello set out to present a national art collection that included works by international artists as well as a laudable representation of works by Maltese artists. He also sought to represent the history of art in Malta up to the present times, displaying both past masters as well as contemporary ones.2 This was the curator’s vision in establishing a national collection worthy of the name, of a standard to match other art galleries in Europe.
Fig. 1 Portrait of Vincenzo Bonello by Giorgio Preca, oil on canvas, 90.5 x 67.5cm. (Courtesy of MUŻA, the National Community Art Museum – Heritage Malta)
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Fig. 1 ‘Portrait of a Maltese Gentleman by an Anonymous German 18th Century Artist’ (detail), here being newly attributed to Antoine Favray, c.1784. (Bavarian State Collections, Alte Pinakothek, Munich)
Between Copies and Authentic Gifts
An Official Portait of Grand Master de Rohan by Antoine Favray Nicholas De Gaetano makes a case for the re-identification of an anonymous ‘Portrait of a Maltese Gentleman’, held at the Alte Pinakothek in Munich, as an official portrait of Grand Master de Rohan by Antoine Favray
The incorporation of the Anglo-Bavarian Langue into the administration of the Order of St John was a multilayered and highly contested matter. Correspondence between various French knights and the French foreign minister Charles de Vergennes (1719–1787)1 are amongst the few contemporary documents that survive which shed light on the reasons for this opposition and the events that sought to impede the Langue’s creation. Indeed, various prominent and—as it resulted— ‘enlightened’ members of the three French Langues were highly sceptical about the motives of the new Langue’s leading members, namely Balí Johann Baptist von Flachslanden (1739–1822) and Abbé, later Bishop and then Cardinal, Johann Casimir Häffelin (1737–1827).2 They also feared that the new Langue would take over some of their privileges and revenues.3 Nevertheless, as attested by the documents in the Bavarian State Archive in Munich, the Archives of the Order in Malta and Rome, as well as an important hitherto unpublished manuscript that surfaced in 2021 on the French
Dr Nicholas De Gaetano is a lawyer who graduated from the University of Malta in 2017 and currently practices in criminal law. He is also actively involved in the research and study of sixteenth- to eighteenthcentury Italian paintings and drawings, specialising on Mattia Preti.
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Fig. 2-3 Allegory of the Anglo-Bavarian Langue, anonymous eighteenthcentury artist, pen and black ink over underdrawing in black pencil on cream paper, 10.5 x 14.5cm. (Archivum de Piro, Casa Rocca Piccola, Valletta); Portrait of Grand Master Emmaneul de Rohan-Polduc, here attributed to Antonio Xuereb after a painting by Favray, c.1784. (Grand Master’s Palace, Valletta / Courtesy of the Office of the President and Heritage Malta) opposite: Fig. 4 ‘Portrait of a Maltese Gentleman by an Anonymous German 18th Century Artist’, here being newly attributed to Antoine Favray, oil on canvas, 2.61 x 1.60m, c.1784. (Bavarian State Collections, Alte Pinakothek, Munich)
art market (Fig. 15), the Bavarian Langue of the Order of Malta was created on 14 December 1781. By consent of Bavarian Duke Elector Charles Theodor (1724–1799) and King George III (1738–1820), the Bavarian Langue was then merged with the English Langue to form the AngloBavarian Langue on 9 April 1782. A contemporary pen and ink drawing discovered a few of years ago in the Archivum de Piro at the Casa Rocca Piccola, in Valletta, depicts the coat of arms of England and Bavaria fused together, as a metaphor for the newly founded Langue (Fig. 2)4. In 1782, to commemorate the founding of the AngloBavarian Langue and to strengthen relations between Bavaria and the Order of St John, Häffelin and Bavarian minister at the Holy See Marchese Tommaso Antici da Pescia commissioned a full-length portrait of Charles Theodore, which was to be presented to Grand Master de Rohan as an official State gift. On 14 October 1783, a ‘cassone col ritratto di Sua Altezza Elettorale [Charles Theodore] di Baviera’ arrived in Malta.5 Today, this portrait depicting the Bavarian Duke Elector hangs in the Pages Room of the Grand Master’s Palace, in Valletta. As observed by Carlos Bongalais, this painting was made by Pompeo Batoni (1708–1787) and his workshop6 and is derived—with subtle but historically important variations7—from the prototype made entirely by Batoni a few years earlier,8 today preserved in the Bavarian State Collections, Alte Pinakothek, in Munich.9 The Conti della Ricetta in the Archives of the Order indicate that Grand Master de Rohan reciprocated this gesture on 31 January 1784, by commissioning Antoine Favray (1706–1798), Malta’s leading artist active at the time, to produce a ‘ritratto intiero della medesima Eminenza [de Rohan] per Sua Altezza Elettorale di Baviera’.10 Until now, this painting was presumed to be lost. It is here argued that a painting (Fig. 1, 4)11 preserved
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in the Bavarian State Collections at the Alte Pinakothek in Munich, currently catalogued as a ‘Portrait of a Maltese Gentleman by an Anonymous German 18th Century Artist’ may very well be this long-lost portrait, for the several reasons outlined below. Firstly, and most importantly, the style and technique of the brushwork in this majestic painting, measuring 2.61x1.60 metres, amply supports the new attribution to Favray, since notable comparisons with other works by Favray from the 1780s can be made. The manner in which paint is applied to construct the facial features of de Rohan finds an exceedingly close similarity in another portrait of
My Favourite Object Patrick Galea
Patrick Galea was educated at the Lyceum, in Malta, and graduated from Leeds Metropolitan University (1973–1977) with a B.A. Hons in Interior Architecture, and with a postgraduate degree in Education from the University of Malta, in 1979. He was Administrator and Visiting Lecturer at MCAST and at the University of Malta, a curator of various exhibitions such as Itinera 1, 2, 3, 4, at the Istituto Italiano di Cultura, in Valletta, and the Rotta Tal-Arti Collective as part of the Independence Celebrations for the years 2008–2012, among others.
Fig. 1 Reproduction of Esprit Barthet’s painting of a nativity scene for the cover of the 1972 Christmas Supplement of the Sunday Times of Malta. This association made it possible to date the original painting by the artist.
Fifty years have passed since completing my A-level studies at what was then known as the Polytechnic in Msida, under the tutorship of Esprit Barthet. I consider myself very lucky in having had Barthet as our art teacher at the Lyceum as well as during Sixth Form, between 1967 and 1973. As students, we were enthralled by the styles and themes that our art teacher embraced in the art room. His obsession with light and colour was passed on to his students who were mesmerised by his technique and his dedication to the concepts he thoroughly believed in. I clearly remember the sessions that he offered on the roof of the school itself. As a chain-smoker, the outdoors provided a godsend for him to puff away and indulge his habit. We thus got to paint rooftops from a high viewpoint, a theme which eventually came to define him as one of the foremost Maltese artists in the second half of the twentieth century. These were years in which Barthet started experimenting with integrating various elements into his paintings, such as human figures, bathers, and dancers—a development on his previous rooftops that essentially documented the geometry of the Maltese townscapes, aerials, vernacular balconies and all. Quoting from his November 1974 article ‘Biography of an Artist’ in the Sunday Times of Malta, author and poet Mario Azzopardi claimed: ‘In 1955, Barthet discovered Rooftops followed by a long period of study of the portraits and nudes.’ Azzopardi mentions two phases as the latest experiments by Barthet; one of them is the study of translucency in colours to the static kinetic. ‘During this evolutionary phase of style and technique his soul ventured unhindered; in colourful harmony and composition where he introduced figures against a plethora of windows and rooftops,’ remarks Prof. J.J. Cremona (National Museum of Art Valletta, 1969). Two years hence, Barthet introduced human figures amid geometrical compositions that featured rectangles.
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On a newly discovered manuscript of the Codice del Sacro Militare Ordine Gerosolimitano Stephen Degiorgio and Valeria Vanesio
The first basic regulations which were issued by the Hospitallers to administer a hospital in Jerusalem may have been dictated under the guardianship of Gerard (d.1120), having been elected as the first official ‘Rector’ of what later became known as the institution of the Order of St John.1 His successor, Raimond du Puy (1121–1160), was the last rector and the first to be invested with the title of ‘Master’, a dignity conferred upon him by Roger II, King of Sicily.2 He was the first to place the fratres hospitalarii within two distinct divisions—ecclesiastical and military—subject to the same Rule, approved by Pope Eugene III.3 In order to place the expanding institution on a sound footing, du Puy convened the first ever Chapter-General in the Holy City of Jerusalem. It was during this session that the Hospitallers adopted a disciplined, spiritual lifestyle inspired after the Rule of St Augustine; the observance of the threefold vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience; and the promulgation of the first collective ‘Statutes’.4 The ‘Statutes’ represented a set of laws enacted by the Hospitaller Order during Chapters-General, whose supreme legislative powers allowed them to promulgate or abrogate the law. No additions, alterations, or omissions from previous or contemporary statutes were permitted, except in the presence of a convened ChapterGeneral5 presided by the Grand Master, his Council, Provincial Bailiffs, knights ‘Grand Cross’, and other dignitaries. Furthermore, all statutes enacted during Chapters-General were deemed definite and binding as long as they met the approval of the Holy See, unless Fig. 1 Newly discovered manuscript related to the 1776 Chapter-General, bound in morocco leather, with gilded floral decorated frames, showing the coat of arms of the Order of St John on the front cover. (Private Collection, Malta / Photo: Joe P. Borg)
otherwise revoked in subsequent Chapters-General or by the supreme pontiff, qui omnia potest.6 In the absence of a Chapter-General, an Ordinary Council was empowered to convene at any given moment. For the smooth governance of the Order matters taken into consideration included admission of members, pensions, commanderies (preceptories), dignities, besides enacting ordinances related to both civil and military affairs. In Malta, the Ordinary Council was presided by the Grand Master and included the bishop, the prior of the church of St John, the seven piliers (the individual heads of the seven active Langues), the senior-most knight (appointed ex gratia by the Grand Master) representing the vacant dignity of England (suppressed by King Henry VIII of England), and all the knights ‘Grand Cross’ resident in Malta.7 From their establishment on the island, the Order progressively transformed itself into a principality and the Grand Master into a Prince.8 In Malta, as elsewhere, Chapters-General were convened at semi-irregular intervals. From 1530 to 1631, they were held sixteen times9—an average of three times every twenty years. The last Chapter-General was held in 1631 and was not reconvened until 1776. One of the main reasons for this suspension occurred when Pope Urban VIII announced that, as from 1631 and henceforth, all Chapters-General were to be presided by an Apostolic Delegate—the Inquisitor. This was deemed as an unacceptable interference which undermined the Hospitallers’ independence.10 Thereafter, the Hospitallers suspended all future Chapter gatherings until its reconstitution was first muted by Grand Master Francisco Ximenes de Texada. His untimely death in November 1775 shifted the onus upon his successor, Grand Master Emmanuel de Rohan-Polduc, who presided over the last Chapter-General in Malta.11
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Fig. 1 Detail of a stereo transparency of Malta, showing three ladies in silk gowns in front of a garden fountain, hand coloured on the back. Photographer unknown. (Courtesy of the Giovanni Bonello Collection)
Early Stereoscopic Photographs of Malta Giovanni Bonello speculates about the introduction and popularity of a photographic wonder: three-dimensional imagery in Victorian Malta
The possibility of two-dimensional imaging being alchemised into three-dimensionality had already intrigued the science of optics before the 1839 invention of photography. Those inquisitive scientists had worked out how a flat image, drawn or printed, could be perceived as having real depth, besides breadth and height, using asymmetrical mirrors. Exploiting the illusions inherent in binocular vision that the human brain processes, stereoscopy was born. However, it was the invention of photography that caused it to bloom. Stereoscopy satisfied one of the appetites that the discovery of photography had aroused in mankind. People started suffering from an intense image-starvation they had never experienced before, and the craving for illustrations soared. With a stereoscope viewer in hand, one could now tour a foreign country in the comfort of an armchair, sipping coffee in your own living room, relishing the world in all its dimensions.
Giovanni Bonello was a judge at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg for twelve years. He is now the General Editor of Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti.
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Fig. 2 Victorian stereo camera and viewer. (Courtesy of the Paul Vella Collection / Photo: Kevin Casha) opposite: Fig. 3 Giorgio Sommer, stereo card No. 601: Bird’s eye view of Valletta, Malta, published in Naples, Atelier Monte di Dio No. 4 / Magazzino S. Caterina No. 5. (Courtesy of the Giovanni Bonello Collection)
A stereoscopic camera employed two lenses set at slightly converging angles to simultaneously take two somewhat different photographs of the same scene or object. The twin photographs were then pasted side by side on a piece of backing carboard and the pair was viewed through a handheld ‘stereoscope’. The image perceived sprang to life—perfectly three-dimensional, with real depth. Few self-respecting middle-class homes would be seen without one. Many proudly possessed a stereoscope and a stack of three-dimensional cards, usually views of faraway landmarks, but of every conceivable subject ranging from classical sculpture to still lives to the most extreme porn. The fashion peaked in the Victorian and Edwardian era and never died out altogether. Enthusiasts who practice stereo photography survive to the present day.
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Was Malta touched at all by the virtually universal stereo craze? Evidence remains rather scanty. The two invaluable bibles of the annals of photography in the island, the first by Margaret Harker (2000)1 and a later one, the monumental history by Kevin Casha (2016)2 refer rather fleetingly to stereo photography. Although rare references to early Maltese photography studios and bazaars stocking stereo views can be found, I believe that not one single three-dimensional photograph certainly signed by a Maltese photographer has so far been
identified. Leandro Preziosi’s 1870 inventory includes two stereo cameras, a small French one bought for £6, and a larger one purchased for £18. This proves Preziosi’s interest in stereoscopic photography. One unsigned threedimensional image has also been attributed to him.3 Some stereo views of Malta are stamped on the back with the name of the local outlet which retailed them, like P.E. Zammit / 10, Strada S. Francesco / Senglea, Malta, or an indistinct G.B. Vella / Bazaar / 31 & 32, Strada Tesoreria / Near the […, illegible] Society / Malta. Kevin Casha has also identified one stamped on the back: Law Zammit Haber, Vecchia, Gozo.4 This absence remains quite unexplainable. My personal collection of these rare Malta gems comprises some hundred items of stereo photographs of Maltese subjects. The majority were manifestly taken by foreign photographers or international dealers in photographic products who believed that Malta cards would command a market. A substantial number, however, are unsigned and anonymous and, thus, any of them could have been taken by a Maltese studio or photographer. So far, this remains in the realm of pure speculation. Again, did the big international publishing houses which marketed stereo photographs worldwide send their own photographers to Malta to snap the images, or did they contract Maltese professional camera artists to provide the negatives? Competent photographers with the necessary skills to carry out such a commission abounded in Malta. For many of the leading international names, the answer remains unknown, except for Giorgio Sommer (1834–1914), perhaps overall the most prolific in imaging
Malta in three dimensions; he is credited with having taken all his innumerable stereo photographs of Italy and Sicily himself. It is reasonable, therefore, to deduce that he personally travelled to the island to shoot his many Malta scenes which he wanted included in his portfolio. Some of the most preeminent international names in late Victorian stereo production had Malta in their world inventories, and marketing must have been brisk, as these photos today quite frequently make an appearance on the international market. Besides Sommer, I have found Maltese scenes sold by Underwood & Underwood Publishers of New York, London, Toronto, and Ottawa;5 the Keystone View Company of Meadville, Pennsylvania, and St Louis, Missouri;6 the United Photographic Company of New York;7 H.C. White Co. of Chicago, New York, and London;8 the Realistic Travels Publishers of London, Cape Town, Bombay, Melbourne, and Toronto;9 and European publishers, among which are B.K. Editions of Paris, and Stereoscop of Rue Manrique, today Rue des Grandes Arcades, Strasbourg. These numbers posit an impressive commercial turnover. The renowned German photographer Giorgio Sommer must have taken a shine to Malta, as his production, both of stereo cards and of cartes-devisite illustrating the island, is quite extensive. At first, he worked in Switzerland where the Alps provided a dramatic inspiration for his three-dimensional photography, but from 1856 he based himself in Naples, where he had the opportunity to capture some stunning images of the eruptions of Vesuvius. From his Naples studios he moved around restlessly, taking multitudes
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Fig. 1 Detail of the tabernacle, ‘Spirito Santo con suoi raggi o splendori’, St Peter’s Monastery, Mdina.
A Marble Altar for the Monastery of St Peter in Mdina Petra Caruana Dingli identifies and investigates the patronage of the women behind the prestigious commission of a work of high Baroque splendour
A wave of church building took place in early modern Malta. These architectural innovations also inspired countless elaborate Baroque works of art and embellishments for the interiors of churches. Many were commissioned and sponsored privately by individuals. The participation of women in this sphere is not well explored, and their initiatives are largely written out of history. One well known instance of a woman acting as a patron of the arts is Cosmana Navarra, who sponsored the rebuilding of St Paul’s church in Rabat in the 1670s and ’80s and commissioned important paintings and silverware to enrich the interior of the church. She spent over 30,000 scudi on the construction and embellishment of this church, a very large sum of money.1 In around 1680, Aloisia Dorel donated over 10,000 scudi, also a considerable sum, for the rebuilding of the chapel at the female monastery of St Scholastica in Vittoriosa.2
Dr Petra Caruana Dingli is Senior Lecturer at the Edward de Bono Institute at the University of Malta. She holds a doctorate in Literature from the University of Oxford and has a special interest in women in nineteenthcentury and early modern literature and cultural heritage. She edited the late Peter Serracino Inglott’s writings on Blessed Adeodata Pisani OSB, shortlisted for the National Book Prize 2019, and co-edited Encounters with Valletta: A Baroque City Through the Ages (2018). She is a long-standing council member of the heritage NGO Din l-Art Ħelwa, and is Editor of its magazine, Vigilo.
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In another example, Maria Dimech gave a generous 1,000 scudi to sponsor a new marble altar for the parish church of Żebbuġ in the late 1720s.3 It is significant that Navarra, Dorel, and Dimech were all widows, and without children. At this period, husbands oversaw the assets of their wives, and fathers or brothers represented unmarried women. In the status of widows, women could have more control over their own funds and decisions. Women living in cloisters followed stern regulations and their activities were very restricted. Yet, they governed themselves within the monastery, administering their own resources, and were led by a chapter of women elected by the sisters among themselves. The daily lives of nuns were not controlled by male relatives. While their communities were secluded, they played an important and respected role within society. Cloistered women lived hidden behind high walls, yet the records they left behind can be more revealing than those of secular Maltese women in the early modern period, who left scant written evidence of their lives at home as daughters, sisters, wives, and mothers. Religious communities of women documented their activities and left traces of their interests and personalities. Some followed and participated in trends in ecclesiastical art.
A commission in Mdina The Benedictine sisters at St Peter’s Monastery in Mdina also commissioned some artistic works. In the 1740s, they decided to modify the altar in their chapel to include a marble scannello—the gradine or ledges holding candlesticks—and a tabernacle. The decision to modify the altar could not have been taken lightly. The altar is the
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focus of all liturgical acts during Mass, and a centrepiece of any church. Their initiative reflects the trends of the time. Artists and artisans were being commissioned to create or adorn marble altars for churches all over the islands. Some of these skilled craftsmen belonged to the same families, for example, the Duranti and Zahra relatives from Senglea who mainly worked in stone and marble, with Francesco Zahra (1710– 1773) also distinguishing himself in design and painting. An earlier pastoral visit of 1687 had described the monastery chapel altar as being of stone (‘Altare quod est lapideum’), suitably decorated (‘decentissimi ornatum’) for celebrating Mass, with a gilt wood tabernacle (‘tabernaculum ligneum ex parte exterior deauratum’).4 On 6 November 1748, a contract was drawn up between the nuns and marmista Saverio Camilleri for the construction of a new altar scannello in marble, with pedestals and a tabernacle.5 A wider team of leading artists and artisans was also involved, including marmista Claudio Duranti, pittore Francesco Zahra, and bronzaro Marco Morello.6 The nuns were represented by their procurator, the priest Francesco Azzopardi of Rabat. The contract specifies the details of the type and colour of marble to be used in the various sections of the altar, including giallo di Sicilia, rosso di Sicilia, and white statuary marble, as well as persico and black. The second gradino, or ledge, was explicitly to resemble the altar in the chapel dedicated to St Publius in the Mdina Cathedral, using green marble (verde antico). That altar had been executed by the same marmista, Claudio Duranti, a few years earlier in 1741.7 The late Mgr John Azzopardi noted that the altar at St Peter’s Monastery closely resembles, both in style as well as in type and colour of marble, the altar which is today in the chapel of St Stephen at St Paul’s parish church in Rabat.
Fig. 2-3 Side views of the scannello, St Peter’s Monastery, Mdina.
This was previously the main altar of that church before it was moved in the nineteenth century. Any resemblance is not surprising as it was created with the same workmanship, and at the same period.8 In 1747, marmista Saverio Camilleri had also signed a contract specifying the details of this new marble altar for the Rabat church.9
A group of women During this period there were around forty nuns at the monastery. The altar was partly sponsored by ten or eleven of them, each contributing their own funds. The new altar was thereby commissioned through the initiative of
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