Description
Bells, clocks and organs in Maltese and Gozitan churches together with the carved walls, the marble decorations and lapidary monuments in St John’s Conventual Church have contributed extensively to the tangible ecclesiastical heritage of Malta. At the same time they shaped and handed down to us our ancestral intangible heritage contained in rituals, music, inscriptions and traditional lore.
The four papers in this book based on meticulous research focus on the commissions granted to both Maltese and foreign artisans alike to execute a whole series of church decorations. They analyse in appreciable detail the part played by the church procurator-in-charge of the commission. It was he who was responsible to create the necessary funds that enabled him to proceed and make the necessary contacts with the artisans responsible for the execution of the deired art-furniture. Much of this rich bequest of church ornamentation is still the admiration of the inquisitive eye interested in the craftsmanship and expertise of long ago. Additional photographs of a few surviving bells, clocks, organs, marble monuments and stone carvings help to elucidate the material.
