Piracy and the terrors of siege are part of our history. Here is an opportunity for adults and children alike to relive the terrors and the joys of the Knights of Malta’s days of glory. Anyone stepping inside the front door at Casa Magazzini simply travels back in time. They explore the visual three-dimensional chronicle while a full narration in thirteen languages provides the rest of the historical detail. At the same time, they experience the sound and even the smell of the scenes they feel a part of. The 34 tableaux cover a full spectrum of vignettes of life during the 200-year rule of the Knights of Malta over these islands. In a still-life pageant, full-size figures of the Knights and Grandmasters from the eight Langues, symbolised by the eight-pointed cross, appear in their various roles.

We see them in conference with each other, or alongside ordinary folk such as craftsmen at the Mint. We admire them in dramatic battle scenes or coping with disasters like the 1693 earthquake in Mdina. We feel their compassion as they offer their services to the sick in the order’s hospital. We are awed by their vision, which leads them to seek out the finest of artists and architects with whom they built Valletta the ‘city for gentlemen’, and monuments to grandeur everywhere. We are saddened when the Imperial rule of Napoleon forces them out of their island bastion. Visitors to the Knights of Malta in Mdina will be able to view the palaces and other monuments in a meaningful historical context.

Tickets are available online.