The Jesuit Church has a cruciform plan, with a central nave and four interconnected bays that house seven side chapels. On the Archbishop Street side, the central bay was designated as a lateral entrance instead of an eighth side chapel. At this lateral entrance are two oratories, one dedicated to the Immaculate Conception and the other to Saint Honoria, which is why it became best known as the Oratory of the Onorati.
Baroque Splendor and Marian Cycle in Valletta
The Jesuit Church, also known for its dedication to the Circumcision of Christ, is one of the most important Baroque monuments in Malta’s capital. Although construction began under the direction of Giuseppe Valeriano, it was the architect Francesco Buonamici who, after 1637, elevated the church to its full splendor, introducing innovative decorative elements on the façade such as inverted volutes with seraphs and cherubic heads amid carved foliage. Within this complex, the Oratory of the Onorati stands out, renowned for its impressive coffered wooden ceiling with hexagonal panels and gilded rosettes, supported by a historic beam structure imported and carefully maintained since the time of the Order of Saint John.
The sculptural richness of the chapel is the work of the Casanova family, who in the 1650s decorated the space with full-length figures of saints such as Saint Joachim, Saint John the Baptist, and Saint Paul, as well as busts of the Jesuit founders, Saint Ignatius of Loyola and Saint Francis Xavier. The main altar is dominated by the titular painting, “The Assumption of the Virgin Mary”, an oil masterpiece by Stefano Erardi that captures the astonishment of the apostles at the empty tomb as Mary is lifted to heaven. This scene is completed by an upper painting of the Holy Trinity, prepared for the coronation of the Virgin.
The oratory also houses a comprehensive pictorial cycle of six large canvases, also created by Erardi, depicting key episodes in the life of Mary, from her Birth to the Immaculate Conception. To safeguard this artistic treasure, a project co-financed by the European Union carried out the restoration of the paintings, canvases, and their stretchers, reversing damage caused by humidity and insect activity. These efforts ensure that the legacy of the Onorati remains a cornerstone of world heritage in the heart of Valletta.
