2003
HISTORIES OF MALTA VOLUME IV –
Convictions
and Conjectures
Once again packed with historical delights, Giovanni Bonello takes us back into a past world of intrigue, murder, prisons and pompous ceremonies. As with the past three volumes, this one is a wealth of information and curiosities, splendidly written by one of Malta’s favourite storytellers. In this volume, two unknown Mattia Preti drawings are discovered at the National library, we are taken in and out of the Knights prisons, and learn all about the murder of Botadino de Botadini – the first Baroque architect in Malta. These are just three of the fifteen articles that are guaranteed to entertain the reader, as Bonello delves into the less known aspects of the history of Malta.
Giovanni Bonello is a Judge of the European Court of Human Rights in
Strasbourg. He writes extensively on human rights, art and history and
is a frequent contributor to Fondazzjoni Patrimonju Malti's Treasures
of Malta.
| Contents | Page |
| In and Out of the Knights' Prisons – Detentions and Escapes | 9 |
| Bontadino de Bontadini – The Murder of the First Baroque Architect in Malta | 44 |
| Two Unknown Mattia Preti Drawings Discovered at the National Library | 61 |
| Sheremetev's Visit to Malta in 1698 | 67 |
| Table Ceremonial in the Grand Masters' Court | 80 |
| Madame de Pompadour Scorned by a Knight of Malta | 97 |
| The Pigot Brothers – Arrogance, Treachery, Sadism, Murder | 108 |
| Mementoes of the 1813 Plague | 126 |
| Malta and the French Navy | 145 |
| The Telegraphs in Malta During the Victorian Era | 164 |
| A Hungarian Ship in Malta – The Carola | 184 |
| The Lure and Lore of Malta's Old Shopfronts | 195 |
| Malta and Japan – Assassins, Mistrust, Exploits, Pageantry | 207 |
| Geo Furst, An Artist to Remember | 220 |
| The Other Side of the Coin | 233 |
| Provenance | 240 |