St. Paul : faith and iconography : representations in art in Malta : late medieval to the present

Abstract

Content: St.Paul in Art in Gozo c.1300-1950 a critical study by Mark Sagona ; St. Paul and the island of Gozo by Fr. Geoffrey George Attard For many centuries, at least since the Late Middle Ages when Malta was, re-Christianised, the Maltese have ,staunchly believed that the Apostle of the Gentiles was delivered to their island, through divine intervention and converted the inhabitants, to Christianity, thus initiating an uninterrupted community of Christians,. St Paul, therefore, became the patron saint of Malta and the Maltese called him their ‘father’. Obviously, the Pauline cult and tradition are solidly reflected in the art of the Maltese Islands, which for many years was primarily religious. From the 13th century onwards, St Paul starts featuring conspicuously in art being produced to decorate the sacred spaces that started to be built. F or obvious reasons, the largest amount of depictions of St Paul in the Maltese Islands is found on Malta, but a considerable number are also found on Gozo. This short study attempts to analyse critically the artistic merits of the present known works on Gozo depicting St Paul, from the earliest possible representation in the thirteenth century to the mid twentieth century, by discussing them within a changing art-historical context. Gozo was, for many years a cultural backwater, but as the centuries progressed, artistic patronage became generally better informed even though the quality of works fluctuated. This paper highlights, in a chronological manner, the most important representations that depict a varied thematic content relating to various episodes in the life of the saint, in particular events central to the Pauline cult in Malta. Particularly relevant to the iconography of the saint are the themes related to Publius, the presumed 'prince' of the island who allegedly became the first bishop of Malta, who also features in various works.