The paintings looking down on Our Lady of Victory Church in Valletta were revealed yesterday for the first time in 20 years, after the restoration of the vaulted ceiling was completed.

The paintings, depicting the life of the Virgin Mary, were restored by conservators from the Courtauld Institute of Art in London after having suffered years of neglect, water infiltration and inappropriate interventions.

In 1996, when the work commenced, the Valletta Rehabilitation Committee placed scaffolding that concealed the roof.

Din l-Art Ħelwa was subsequently granted guardianship of the church in 2012 and are now continuing with the restoration of the rest of the church.

“We started the project four years ago and we are really pleased that our objective to finish the ceiling in time for the Great Siege anniversary of September has been fulfilled,” the vice president of Din l-Art Ħelwa, Simone Mizzi, said. “We now hope to finish the rest of the church by 2018, when Valletta will be the European Capital of Culture.”

A conservation project on the ceiling paintings by Alessio Erardi has finally been completed.

I think this will be one of the real treasures of Malta

The ceiling, painted by Alessio Erardi in 1716, is considered the church’s most valuable treasure. It was commissioned by Grand Master Perellos following the tradition of his predecessor, Grand Master de Valette, who dedicated the church to the nativity of the Virgin, because September 8 is her feast day.

Ms Mizzi said the church will be closed temporarily in November when art- and environment-friendly lighting for the vault ceiling will be installed. It will hopefully reopen by Christmas.

Mgr Victor Zammit McKeon, rector of the church, thanked Din l-Art Ħelwa and the other benefactors. “My plans are that there will be a daily Mass here, as it used to be, and I hope that I will find the right time to introduce a Mass on Sunday,” he said.

“You can imagine that a church like this without the liturgy would lose its beauty.”

The HSBC Foundation committed €400,000 to the restoration of the vaulted ceiling and will also help fund the new lighting.

“I think this will be one of the real treasures of Malta, and the HSBC Foundation is very proud to be part of this,” said Mark Watkinson, CEO of the HSBC Foundation.

“I think it has been a great partnership and I would like to congratulate all those people involved, particularly Din l-Art Ħelwa, which has done wonderful work.”