St Publius church open day to coincide with Floriana gardens festival

The Floriana Local Council is once again organising the Ġenna ta’ Ġonna (Heaven of Gardens) event on Sunday.

Floriana has the largest number of public gardens in Malta, which will be open to the public along with museums, historical buildings and other places of interest. There will be guided tours at most locations.

Attendees can explore the secret gardens within the bastions and works of art under the arches on St Anne’s Street. One can also see the old manuscripts and mummified bodies of priests beneath the Cappuccin convent.

The church of St Publius will be organising an open day to coincide with the event. Visitors will be able to go up onto the north steeple to admire the church’s architecture and take in breathtaking views.

On the way up, the clock room will also be open for those interested in viewing the mechanism that makes it tick and chime. Visitors will also be given access onto the working platform in the transept on the right hand side of the high altar dedicated to Our Lady of Rosaries, where works connected with the decoration of the ceiling are in progress.

Lunch will be served on the north parvis, commonly known as ‘iz-zuntier ta’ Balzunetta’ at 1pm.

Attendance is only available on a pre-booking basis. Those wishing to attend can contact either Rev Archpriest Fr. Richard Borg on 2124 7106 or Stephen Tonna on 7933 9649.

This year’s event will also feature an exhibition comprising a large collection of books and other literature, all written and donated to St Publius church by Professor Oliver Friggieri. These will be on display at 2, Sarria Street, the site that is to be converted into a church museum. Apart from the lunch, all entrances are free.