The Carmelite Convent, Mdina : history, architecture and works of art

Abstract

The Carmelite Convent at Mdina is essentially an example of the Maltese Baroque inheritance, imported through the efforts of the Knights of the Order of Saint John and remained ingrained in the Maltese identity even in subsequent generations. This study provides an insight into the various aspects which make up the convent, including architecture, paintings as well as other ‘objets d'art’. This dissertation moved hand in hand with the study which Krystle Farrugia undertook on the adjoining Carmelite Church at Mdina. The convent cannot be separated from the church since both grew from the same roots as the construction of the convent followed that of the church. Another dissertation on the Carmelites at Balluta was also carried out simultaneously by Sara Pace, making all three dissertations part of a larger project to further the study on the Carmelites in Malta. In order to understand the importance of the Carmelite Convent at Mdina, this study starts off by giving a generic introduction to worldwide Carmelite history. The convent is then placed in its context in Malta showing how the Carmelites grew from a small church and convent on the outskirts of Rabat to its present location in Mdina. The general history is discussed to outline the most important occurrences which had an impact on the Carmelite Convent at Mdina. This dissertation is based on archival research carried out primarily on the documents found at the Carmelite Convent at Mdina. These were important to trace the development of the construction of the convent as a detailed description of the work in progress could be followed. Nonetheless, the architect who drew up the plan of the convent is not directly mentioned in these documents, making a possible attribution one of the aims of this dissertation. This could only be done by giving a background of the various architects working in Malta at the time of its construction and finding stylistic similarities between the works of such architects and the Carmelite Convent in Mdina. Archival documents were also important to trace the progress of the individual rooms such as the refectory. By going through various inventories, it was possible to trace the various stages in which the refectory developed. This is discussed separately since it encapsulates the Baroque spirit of a total work of art. Disassociating its architecture, paintings and sculpture in different chapters would not have paid justice to the true splendor of this room. Paintings found in other various spaces of the convent are discussed in the following chapter. These paintings are dated based on style since most of the paintings are of a vernacular nature and are unsigned and undated. The lack of documentation regarding most of the paintings as well as their retardataire nature made this analysis rather tentative. Few are the works which are of high artistic merit and most of these important works were once to be found in the church. The last chapter deals with sculpture, furniture and other 'objets d'art' which further embellish the convent. This dissertation attempts to create a holistic view of the features which characterize the Carmelite Convent at Mdina, including both the works of considerable artistic merit as well as the more vernacular ones. Only in this way one can truly appreciate the simultaneous extremes found in art in the Maltese islands throughout the centuries.