The Planning Commission has granted planning permission for restoration works on the main façade of the protected Grade 1 Naxxar Parish Church, dedicated to the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Works will include the removal of deposits and updating of the lighting system. In parts of the façade, where the stone has deteriorated, new slabs will be used to replace those that are damaged, the PA said. 

The works will be carried out in accordance with an approved restoration method statement and monitored by the Planning Authority’s conservation officials.

The church was built between 1614 and 1630, and the original design has been attributed to architect Tumas Dingli. The plan of the church is based on a Latin cross, conforming to the architectural trend of church-building in Malta at the beginning of the seventeenth century.

The original façade of the church followed the typical wide column structure and was divided into three vertical bays.

At the beginning of the 20th century, work began on the foundations for a new façade with high steeples and side chapels. The original design and proportions of the church had been heavily changed due to these alterations and enlargement.

In the pastoral visitation report of 1653, the bishop remarked that the church was the most beautiful of all the churches on the island – “Inter hulus insulae ecclesias bene primatum obtinult.”

The Planning Authority scheduled this parish church as a Grade 1 monument on August 26, 2011 as per Government Notice 782.