An angel holding aloft the sword and dagger of Grand Master Fra Jean de Valette.

Jean Parisot de Valette’s dagger has returned to Malta – if only temporarily – after more than 200 years.

As part of the events marking Malta’s 2017 EU presidency, Heritage Malta has organised a much-anticipated exhibition on Grand Master de Valette’s dagger. The poniard, on loan from the Louvre Museum, Paris, returned to Malta for the first time since 1798.

The dagger was gifted to de Valette by King Philip II of Spain, in recognition of his victory of the Great Siege, together with a sword. Both eventually gathered a mysterious aura around them, having had great historical importance to both the Order of St John and the Maltese.

A detail from the painting The 8 September Procession showing a page holding the sword and poniard of Grand Master de Valette.

In fact, the dagger and the sword, kept at the Grand Master’s Palace, were shown to the public once a year in a procession held on September 8, marking the day when the Great Siege (1565) was lifted.

This tradition was held until 1797 as, a year later, the Maltese islands were taken over by French general Napoleon Bonaparte. Napoleon was very fond of military leaders, including de Valette. His ambition was to furnish a museum with possessions from conquered states. But while the sword was sent to the museum in France along with other artefacts, Napoleon decided to keep the dagger for himself. After his death, the dagger was put on display together with the sword at the Louvre. The dagger and sword are accompanied by other related exhibits from the national collection.

The exhibition is being held at the National Museum of Archaeology in Republic Street, Valletta, and runs until July 9. Opening hours: 9am to 6pm, with the last admission at 5.30pm. Admission included in the museum’s regular ticket price. For more information, visit Heritage Malta’s website www.heritagemalta.org or the official Facebook page.