Simon Mercieca published a meticulously researched paper in which he traced the origins of the Gafà family and found that, originally, it had rural origins. With the coming to Malta of the Order of St John in 1530, Birgu (Vittoriosa) developed from a fishing village into a town that encouraged the emergence of the artisan class with its maestri and magistri, who gradually took over most of the artistic commissions that had formerly been granted to foreign artists.

A number of rural families, especially if they were proficient in crafts, transferred their homes to Birgu because, through this move, they felt that their livelihood would be assured. Among these families, one includes the Gafà (formerly surnamed Cafor or Casor) family that, almost up to the end of the 16th century, was mainly based in Siġġiewi, though some branches were based in Kirkop, Żebbuġ and Attard.

Melchiorre’s great-grandfather Michele, and his wife Isabella née Cassar, were well-off and could afford a secure upbringing to their numerous offspring, which included Valerio, Melchiorre’s grandfather, whose son Marco’s marriage to Veronica Spiteri in 1616 produced no less than 10 offspring, including Melchiorre and Lorenzo, who was to become a well-known architect. The family was somewhat relatively well-off owing mainly due to the wealth brought into the family by great-grandmother Isabella (Cassar) through her marriage in 1557.

Melchiorre was born in Vittoriosa on January 21, 1636, a date established through the city’s baptismal registers and a family reconstruction. He was christened Marcello, after his elder brother, born in 1634, who died when he was two months old. However, he was always known by his parents as Melchiorre, and he is referred to by this name in the Vittoriosa Status Animarum records for 1658.

In c.1610, prior to his marriage, his father Marco had settled in Vittoriosa for employment purposes and made a living as a petty artisan, known as a cerdone. However, the Vittoriosa environment, with its numerous craftsmen and workshops, gave Melchiorre a sound theoretical background. Conversely, the admittedly small family fortune guaranteed the needed financial assistance to enable him to proceed with his studies.

The Vittoriosa environment, with its numerous craftsmen and workshops, gave Melchiorre a sound theoretical background

Little to nothing is known about Melchiorre’s first induction into sculpture, though he is documented working with the Casanova scalpellini, where he was known as Marcello Gafar in 1652 and 1653. It does seem, therefore, that he received training at and worked in the Casanova bottega.

It has also been suggested that the young Melchiorre trained in the Vittoriosa workshop of a sculptor named Dozzinale, of whom nothing is really known, and that a Spanish knight was impressed with his talent and took him under his protection. But this is just conjecture.

It was probably in 1658 that Melchiorre left Malta and proceeded to Rome. Whether someone helped him to take this momentous step is anybody’s guess, though it may have been someone influential, since he was advised to enter the bottega of the well-known Ercole Ferrata (1610-86). Various names have been mentioned, including Pope Alexander VII (1599-1667) – Inquisitor of Malta residing in Vittoriosa in 1634-39, and the influential knight Fra Giovanni Bichi, but all this is in the realm of hypothesis.

It was in Rome that Melchiorre’s surname came ultimately to be known as Cafà, presumably because of linguistic difficulties to pronounce the Semitic ‘G’ in Gafà.

Since he worked at the bottega of Ercole Ferrata, Melchiorre must have come into contact with the style of Alessandro Algardi (1598-1654). Gafà’s first works included two wooden processional statues still in use in Malta: Our Lady of the Rosary (1661) for the Dominican church in Rabat, and St Paul (c.1659), commissioned by the Testaferrata family of Valletta, who donated it to the parish of St Paul in Valletta in or before 1694. It has been suggested that the commission for the Rabat statue was obtained through the intervention of his brother Giuseppe, who was a Dominican friar. Both statues are akin to Algardi’s tradition.

Titular processional statue of St Paul by Melchiorre Gafà. Courtesy: Collegiate Chapter of St Paul Shipwrecked parish church, Valletta

Processional statue of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary by Melchiorre Gafà. Courtesy: The Prior and Dominican Community in Rabat

In Rome, Gafà had to learn how to sculpt in marble, a medium in which he had never worked before. Within two years, he had mastered all he needed to know – the choice of marble, carving, using a drill and polishing – and could undertake independent commissions. By 1660, he was commissioned by Camillo Francesco Pamphili (1622-66) to sculpt the marble altarpiece of St Eustace in the Lion’s Den for the church of St Agnese in Angone in Piazza Navona.

Pamphili was delighted with Gafà’s work and, in 1663, he entrusted him with another marble sculpture, this time for the family chapel in the Church of San Agostino, off Piazza Navona: Charity of St Thomas of Villanova, whose terracotta bozzetto is exhibited in Malta. Neither Gafà nor Pamphili lived long enough to see the completed sculpture, which was finished by Ferrata in 1669.

Within this short time, Gafà established himself among the best the Eternal City could offer. In fact, in 1662, Gafà was admitted to the membership of the prestigious Accademia di San Luca and the Pio Sodalizio dei Virtuosi al Pantheon.

Other commissions came Melchiorre’s way which he carried out; these included: Ecstasy of St Catherine of Siena in c.1662 for the church of Santa Caterina a Magnanapoli in Rome, and St Rose of Lima in 1665, that was sent to the church of St Dominic in Lima, Peru. Both commissions had a Dominican connection and possibly thanks to the intervention of his brother Giuseppe, who was a Dominican friar.

Ecstasy of St Catherine of Siena by Melchiorre Gafà at the church of S. Caterina a Magnanapoli, Rome, Italy. Courtesy: Wikipedia.com

Charity of St Thomas of Villanova by Melchiorre Gafà, finished by Ercole Ferrata, at the church of San Agostino, Rome, Italy. Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

In the same year, Melchiorre was approached by the Order of St John for a sculptural group of The Baptism of Christ, backed by a Gloria as its backdrop, naturally for the Order’s conventual church of St John in Valletta. Ultimately, Gafà accepted the commission but did not live long enough to see it through.

Because of this commission, Melchiorre visited Malta at the beginning of 1666 for a couple of months to see for himself the actual location where the Baptism would be placed. He also obtained other commissions in Malta, including a marble statue of St Paul, for St Paul Grotto in Rabat, which was later finished by Ercole Ferrata. He left Malta in May 1666.

St Paul, by Melchiorre Gafà, finished by Ercole Ferrata, at St Paul Grotto, Rabat. Photo: Daniel Cilia. Courtesy: Collegiate Chapter of St Paul parish church, Rabat.

The present church of St Biagio della Pagnotta in Rome. Melchiorre Gafà was buried here in 1667, but the church exterior was rebuilt during the 18th century. Courtesy: Wikipedia.com

Back in Rome, Gafà continued with his busy life, which included portraiture, of which only two examples exist: a 1667 bust of Pope Alexander VII, of which there are two bronze versions – at the Duomo of Siena, Italy, and at The Metropolitan Museum of Art at New York, US. A terracotta version exists at Palazzo Chigi, Ariccia. In c.1667, Melchiorre was commissioned to sculpt a large marble statue of Pope Alexander III for the Duomo of Siena but he never completed this statue and it was eventually finished by Ercole Ferrata.

After an accident in his workshop, Gafà died on September 4, 1667, at the age of just 31, and was buried in the church of San Biagio della Pagnotta in Via Giulia. At the time of his demise, there were still a number of uncompleted works that were eventually brought to a conclusion by Ercole Ferrata and others.

Terracotta bozzetto of Charity of St Thomas of Villanova by Melchiorre Gafà at MUŻA, Valletta. Photo: Daniel Cilia. Courtesy: Heritage Malta

Bronze bust of Pope Alexander VII by Melchiorre Gafà at the Duomo, Siena, Italy. Photo: Daniel Cilia

Martyr Saint by Melchiorre Gafà, one of two wax bozzettos at MUŻA, Valletta. Photo: Daniel Cilia. Courtesy: Heritage Malta

A list of his works, drawn up by Keith Sciberras, comprises 62 items, including small works. Of his works, only the following eight items are in Malta: Charity of St Thomas of Villanova in terracotta (1663) at the National Museum of Art in Valletta, known as MUŻA; Glory of St Catherine of Siena in wax (c.1662) in a private collection; two small wax statues, each titled Martyr Saint (c.1667) at MUŻA; the wooden processional statue of St Paul (c.1659) at St Paul Shipwrecked collegiate parish church, Valletta; the wooden processional statue of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary (1661) at the Dominican church at Rabat; the marble statue of St Paul (1666-9) – completed by Ercole Ferrata – at St Paul’s Grotto, Rabat; and a sanctuary lamp in silver and gilt bronze (c.1666) at St Paul collegiate parish church, Rabat.

A 1967 set of Malta postage stamps commemorating the third centenary of Melchiorre Gafà’s death in 1667.

Gafà’s demise was followed by a period of litigation mostly between his heirs in Malta and his main patrons in Rome, mainly regarding the quantification of his unfinished works. In 1668, some items were sent to Malta, including the terracotta bozzetto of Charity of St Thomas of Villanova and the two wax Martyr Saints. But the great majority of the contents in Gafà’s studio probably ended up in Ercole Ferrata’s workshop. The few items sent to Malta had possibly been in Gafà’s residence. A contractual settlement for the litigation was finally reached in September 1669 and only then could work start on the completion of Melchiorre’s unfinished works.

Acknowledgements

During the research for this article, reference was made to the following works: Simon Mercieca, From Rural Livelihood to a Cosmopolitan Vocation: Tracing the Origins of the Gafà Family, in Melitensium Amor Festschrift in Honour of Dun Ġwann Azzopardi, Malta, 2002; and Keith Sciberras (editor), Melchiorre Cafà, Maltese Genius of the Roman Baroque, Malta, 2006.