The Planning Commission of the Planning Authority approved a development permit for restoration works to be carried out on the façade of the Church dedicated to St. Mark in Rabat.

The restoration works will include the removal of all metal inserts, dead cables and cement renders while also address the deterioration of stone caused by the elements. 

The works will be carried out in accordance with an approved restoration method statement and monitored by the Planning Authority’s conservation officers. The restoration method statement has been endorsed by the Superintendent of Cultural Heritage.

Construction on the Church, based on a design by Girolomo Cassar, started in 1571 and was completed by 1588. Although along the years some changes to the interior design have been carried out, the original structure is still that of Cassar. The Church, which forms part of the adjacent Augustinian monastery is decorated with a portico which enriches its harmonious façade. Girolomo Cassar seems to have designed the façade of the Church of St. Mark at Rabat on Renaissance examples he had seen during his study at Naples and Rome. Interiorly, the church has a simple architectural layout which includes a nave, two side aisles and a choir apse. The Church is roofed over the wide nave by means of a barrel vault, which is one of the earliest in Malta and is considered to have served as a prototype for Cassar’s Co-Catherdral in Valletta.

The Church dedicated to St. Mark in Rabat and the adjacent monastery are proposed for scheduling.