Din l-Art Ħelwa has announced that the unique medieval chapel of Ħal Millieri just outside Żurrieq has been rendered accessible again, after the extensive storm damage to its rubble walls and pathways was repaired in time for the annual celebration in honour of the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary. 

This year’s open day will be held tomorrow. For the occasion the chapel will be open to the public from 9am to 6pm. Mass will be celebrated at 10am, followed by the blessing of the adjoining churchyard. 

DLĦ, the volunteer heritage organisation which holds the chapel in trust, is organising two guided tours of the site led by  Stanley Farrugia Randon at 11.15am, and Anthony Mangion, curator of the chapel, at 4pm. 

The church of the Annunciation at Ħal Millieri is a major landmark of Malta’s medieval past. The present building dates to around 1450, but archeological excavations have shown that it was constructed on the site of an earlier, possibly 13th century chapel, and a much older late-Roman rural complex.

The Ħal Millieri church is best known for its medieval architectural features, and for the unique set of fresco paintings that adorn its side walls between the springing of the arches. 

This anachronistic cycle of holy effigies, which is believed to have been copied from the earlier chapel, has been expertly restored through the efforts of DLĦ, as a fine exemplar of Maltese medieval vernacular art.

The church can be reached from Mqabba Road at the Żurrieq entrance to Blue Grotto Avenue or from Diamond Jubilee Square (Fuq il-Mentna) at the end of the Mqabba bypass.