The Rotunda of Mosta
Words by: Robert Agius
A sight which no visitor to Malta is likely to miss is the impressive one provided by the Mosta Rotunda, the parish church in the centre of the island, dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. During the day, in fact, you are likely to see small knots of tourists admiring the majestic church, taking pictures or preparing to enter this enormous place of worship, which, like most churches in Malta and Gozo, has an interesting story to tell.
The Mosta church, which has the ninth largest unsupported dome in the world, and the third largest church dome in Europe (after those of St Peter’s Basilica in Rome and St Paul’s Cathedral, in London) was built in the last century to a design by the architect George Grognet de Vassé (1774–1892), a Maltese despite his French name. De Vassé, whose plan is in the neo-classical style and was closely based on that of the Pantheon, in Rome, proposed that the new church be built around the old parish church so that the locals would continue to have a place to worship while the new church was being built. It was agreed that this would be demolished once the new one was completed.
The Rotunda, which can accommodate 10,000 people, was constructed by the master-mason Anġlu Gatt. When there was a threat of a shortage of funds and the abandonment of the project, the people of Mosta were eager to see the new church completed. Apart from collecting funds, sometimes at great sacrifice, many of them — women and children included — soon set about giving a helping hand with the construction, in order to see their dream come true.
The church took 27 years to complete. On 18 February 1860, the demolition of the old parish church began and the new church was officially inaugurated three weeks later by the bishop of Malta, Mgr. Gaetano Pace Forno, who intoned the Te Deum, the hymn of thanksgiving, amid the joyous enthusiasm of the people of Mosta. A dome of such proportions (37.2 metres in diameter) required walls of unusual thickness to support it, and this aspect of Grognet’s plan was rather controversial.
Nevertheless, the plans went ahead and the foundation stone was laid on 30 May, 1833. Since then the church has been regularly embellished with paintings and gilding. The altarpiece, which has been removed from the old church, shows the Assumption. It was painted in 1678 and Our Lady was solemnly crowned in 1975. The statue of Our Lady, which is carried in procession every year on 15 August, the feast of the Assumption and a holiday, was made in 1868 by the noted sculptor Salvatore Dimech; it was restored in 1948 by an equally well-known sculptor, Vincent Apap. The frescoes are by Giuseppe Calí, a much loved and admired artist.
Mosta is one of a score of parishes in Malta and Gozo which holds a Good Friday procession, featuring about 10 statues depicting episodes from the Passion of Our Lord. Mosta’s Good Friday procession is one of the most popular. The titular feast of the Assumption held in Mosta is by far the most popular of the five held on the same day in Malta. Held at the height of the summer season, it attracts thousands of foreign visitors and Maltese emigrants who have settled in the United States, Canada and Australia, many of whom hail from Mosta. The feast provides a good opportunity for them to visit the land of their birth and to see family and friends. The statue of Our Lady is surrounded with masses of floral bouquets and large decorated candles as a sign of thanksgiving. Many of them are offered by Mosta-born migrants, who are also among the church’s most generous benefactors.
A proud moment in the history of Mosta church came in 1913, when the 24th International Eucharistic Congress was held in Malta. Mosta was the focal point of the various liturigical functions and religious manifestations, and the main street is in fact called Eucharistic Congress Road.
An even prouder, and certainly more dramatic moment came on 9 April 1942, at the height of the Axis bombing raids over Malta. With the nearby Ta’Qali airstrip a constant target of enemy fighters, Mosta church was hit by a 400-lb Luftwaffe bomb which pierced the celebrated dome, making a gaping hole, and landed on the church’s floor, when about 300 worshippers were at prayer waiting for evening mass. But, miraculously, it failed to explode. The same type of bomb as pierced the dome is now on display, the original was dumped at sea. It is exhibited inside the sacristy together with pictures of the damage caused to the dome, which was repaired in a short time.
Although one may disagree with the aesthetic values of Mosta church, or its acoustic properties, one cannot dispute the magnitude of the engineering feat, which the dome represents. Certainly, to the people of Mosta, its size is a point of particular pride, but they are even more proud of the fact that it was their forefathers, with their own hands, who built the church.
