Eleven years after Lm30,000 was spent on the extensive restoration of Our Lady of Pilar church in Valletta, its treasures and beauty remain hidden to many.
Restorer and painter Manuel Zammit, who spent two years on the job as part of a Valletta rehabilitation project, is hoping that the church will be opened more frequently and at more regular hours than is the case at present.
"The gilder John Pace and I spent a lot of time on its restoration. The church had suffered a great deal of damage. It would be so nice if its treasures and beauty could be exposed regularly for Maltese and tourists alike to appreciate," Mr Zammit said.
Mr Zammit explained that the church, which is situated at the back of the Auberge d'Aragon, is looked after by the Franciscan nuns.
"Most of the time the church is closed because those entering the church have easy access to the nuns' convent. Sometimes, tourists knock at the nuns' door and they open up for them, but at other times, people just walk on by because they see it closed. It's such a pity," he said.
One of the nuns said the order would love to be able to open the church more often, but their human resources were limited.
"There are only five nuns here, and two are quite elderly. We don't feel comfortable leaving the church open all the time because we cannot close the passageway leading to the convent and we don't feel safe," the nun said.
The nun said that it had been decided between the nuns that those who wished to see the church could ring the bell of the convent at 49, West Street between 9.30 a.m. and noon and 4.30 and 7 p.m.
Records show that the church was built as part of the auberge of the Aragonese knights, around 1670, and suffered considerable damage during the earthquake of 1693.
Italian architect Romano Carapecchia was then commissioned by the knights to restore the dome and to remodel the entire structure.
Grandmaster Ramon Perellos and Fra Raimondo de Soler forked out the necessary funds for its embellishment.
The church is historically important because of its baroque architecture and its connection with the Spanish. It is also one of the most decorated small churches in Valletta.
Delving into the restoration challenge that they faced, Mr Zammit said the church had peeling dark grey paint, deteriorating masonry and the fresco above the altar was no longer visible.
The gold leaf had been mostly painted over and the whole structure had an enormous humidity problem.
"We had to repaint the entire fresco over the altar - it was an immense challenge. Most of our work had to be done from scratch," he said.
Records show that there was originally only one altar, and that the altarpiece was the work of Stefano Erardi which shows the apparition of Our Lady on a column (pilar in Spanish) to St James.
At the beginning of the century, two more altars were added, one dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the other to St Joseph.
Both these altars had been erected by one of the rectors of the church, Canon Aloisio Farrugia.