Titular processional statues of the Maltese islands : 1600-1940 : an historic and artistic analysis

Abstract

Malta's artistic heritage, is made up of important works of art, but it also includes 'objets d'art' which while being of lesser merit contribute to a significant cultural richness. Many of our processional and devotional statues may be safely classified among the lesser works. Precisely because of their limited importance they rarely attract the attention of historians and academics. My study will attempt to reconcile the best elements available together with my personal comments, in order to achieve a balanced assessment. Besides, a broader overview of statues with special reference to historical context, influences, tradition, talent, style, and so on, brought together in a single volume will surely help to ensure easier cross-referencing, and hopefully a more thorough analysis of such works. Reference will also be made to alterations, additions and restoration work on statues throughout the years. When nothing of the original survives it may be difficult, at times impossible to give a balanced picture of what really existed in the first place. Interpretations are possible but some of them may end up wide of the mark. To further complicate the issue when certain statues were replaced the old ones were sometimes lost, thereby losing track of the originals. The primary source can be the statue itself or else contemporary documentary evidence, both of which sometimes survive.