St John's Co-Cathedral — Gold Hidden Behind a Plain Facade

Maklowicz enters the Co-Cathedral and says one word: "Stunning baroque." He's right. From the outside, it's a stark, rectangular building — deliberately modest, because the knights had taken a vow of humility. But inside...

An Interior That Takes Your Breath Away

Every centimetre of the walls and ceiling is covered in carved limestone, gold, marble and paintings. 400 marble tombstones on the floor are graves of knights — each bearing a family coat of arms. Mattia Preti spent 5 years painting the vault, telling the life of St John the Baptist.

Caravaggio — The Greatest Work

In the oratory hangs "The Beheading of St John" — Caravaggio's largest painting (3.7 × 5.2 m) and the only work he ever signed. The artist hid his signature in the blood spurting from the saint's neck. Maklowicz notes: "Caravaggio was fleeing a death sentence, yet in Malta he created a work that has survived the centuries."

The Langues Chapels

Eight side chapels represent the eight "langues" (nationalities) of the knights: Provence, Auvergne, France, Italy, Aragon, England, Germany and Castile. Each chapel is a work of art in itself.

Practical info: Entry €15, audio guide included. Open Mon-Fri 9:30-16:30, Sat 9:30-12:30. Closed Sundays.