Monday 7 May 2012

Rotunda of Mosta

Mosta is a small town situated in the middle of the island of Malta. The town's name derived from the Arabic word 'musta' meaning centre.  Initially a hamlet, Mosta turned out to be a busy market town after 17th century. 


Mosta Dome basking under the glowing sun

The town is famous for it's Mosta Rotunda (The DeChurch of the Assumption of Our Lady or Mosta dome).  A roman catholic church, this is the third largest unsupported dome in Europe (superseded by St.Peter's Bascilica in Italy and Hagia Sofia, Turkey).  


Interiors of the church, the dome and the sacred figures around the wall

Designed by a Maltese architect Giorgio de Vasse, this church will be similar to that of Pantheon in Rome.  There's a nice history related to this church.  During the WW2, the church took a direct hit from German bomb during a mass.  The bomb is said to have pierced the dome, but it never exploded.  So Maltese people consider this as a miracle.  A replica of 200kg bomb can also be seen in the sacristy.

9 comments:

  1. Interior is pretty gooddd!!!loved the first pic most

    ReplyDelete
  2. The dome looks interesting. Talk about luck with the unexploded bomb!

    Destination Infinity

    ReplyDelete
  3. Interiors of the dome looks fantastic!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I didnt know about this place or the cathedral! Thanks for sharing. The domes and interiors are rich

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yeah....there are hundreds of cathedral in Malta and this is one of the biggest!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I love visiting such places. Thanks for these grand views.

    ReplyDelete