St Catherine's Chapel officially the Church of St Catherine and St Peter is an 18th-century
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
church located in
Mqabba
Mqabba ( mt, L-Imqabba) is a town in the Southern Region of Malta. It has a traditional Maltese village layout, with a population of about 3,300 inhabitants. The focal point is the Parish Church of the Assumption, found at the core of the villag ...
, Malta.
Origins
The origins of this chapel are unknown. The chapel is mentioned by inquisitor
Pietro Dusina Pietro Dusina was an Italian Roman Catholic priest from Brescia who was the inquisitor and apostolic delegate to Malta between 1574 and 1575.
Dusina was nominated inquisitor of Malta by Pope Gregory XIII on 3 July 1574, and he arrived on the island ...
during his apostolic visit to Malta in 1575. He mentioned that the chapel which he visited was built in 1550 however an older one existed. The chapel was built beside another chapel dedicated to St Peter. Dusina describes the chapel as lacking in numerous items and nearly bare. It had one altar and an icon of Our Lady with St Catherine and St Peter.
When the chapel was visited by Bishop Tommaso Gargallo in 1598, he found the chapel in a very god state equipped with all necessary items for the celebration of the liturgy. The chapel is mentioned once more in 1634 where it is mentioned that the chapel was equipped with one altar, wooden candle sticks, a cross, and an icon depicting Our Lady with St Catherine and St Andrew, indicating that the ican was a different one then the one described in 1575.
Present chapel
In 1759 the chapel was in danger of collapsing and it was decided to demolish it together with the adjacent St Peter's chapel. Instead of them, one church was built. The cornerstone was inaugurated and blessed by the Parish priest Reverend Mikiel Giocomo Tortella in 1764. The chapel was completed 10 years later in 1774 and consecrated by the same parish priest on Easter Sunday. The church was dedicated to
St Catherine of Alexandria
Catherine of Alexandria (also spelled Katherine); grc-gre, ἡ Ἁγία Αἰκατερίνη ἡ Μεγαλομάρτυς ; ar, سانت كاترين; la, Catharina Alexandrina). is, according to tradition, a Christian saint and virgin, wh ...
and
Saint Peter
Saint Peter; he, שמעון בר יונה, Šimʿōn bar Yōnāh; ar, سِمعَان بُطرُس, translit=Simʿa̅n Buṭrus; grc-gre, Πέτρος, Petros; cop, Ⲡⲉⲧⲣⲟⲥ, Petros; lat, Petrus; ar, شمعون الصفـا, Sham'un ...
. The exterior of the church was built in the form of a square while the interior is circular. A baroque dome was also built. The chapel has one door and a large window on top of it. A bell tower was added sometime later.
Prior to
WWII
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
the church was used regularly however since then the church was used as a storage space for liturgical items. In 2004 the chapel was restored.
Interior
The chapel has one stone altar painted to look like marble. The titular painting, depicting St Catherine, above the altar is from an unknown artist however it has the date 1776 painted in the bottom right corner. On the bottom left corner there are 4 letters V.F.G.A. ''(Votum Fecerunt Gratiam Acceperunt)'' which mean ''Make a Vow and the Grace Receive''.
References
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18th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Malta
Mqabba
National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands
Roman Catholic churches completed in 1764