A public lecture by Prof. Keith Sciberras on Melchiorre Cafà’s statuette, St Rose of Lima will discuss this work of art within the context of Cafà’s artistic output and also within the wider framework of the Roman Baroque style.

The beatification of St Rose of Lima in April 1668, the first female saint from the new world, coincided with the display of Cafà’s marble statue of the Dominican saint at the Vatican.

The sculptor’s untimely death seven months before the occasion was inauspicious as this was supposed to be a celebration of the Maltese sculptor’s claim to fame in Gian Lorenzo Bernini’s playing field.

Following the beatification, the marble statue crossed the Atlantic to finally mark the saint’s tomb in Peru’s capital city, Lima. Cafà’ had produced a number of smaller bronze versions of the statue, the most splendid of which has been acquired by Heritage Malta.

The lecure is being given tomorrow at 6.30pm at MUŻA. The event, a joint collaboration between Heritage Malta and the Department of Art and Art History within the University of Malta, is free of charge. For more information, visit www.heritagemalta.org.