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Parish Church of Stella Maris in Sliema 

In 1851, a petition was sent to Bishop Publio Maria Sant requesting permission to build a new and bigger church near the Chapel of Our Lady of Graces. 
Architect Giuseppe Bonavia was entrusted with the design of the new church. On 28th April 1853 the first stone was laid, by the Diocesan Vicar Mgr. Vincenso Chapelle. The Church was completed two years later and blessed by Mgr. Chapelle on August 11, 1855. It was dedicated to Our Lady, Star of the Sea, or, as it is better 
known, Stella Maris. The church was enlarged further in the late 19th century. In 1873, a project was drawn up and Andrea Vassallo was given the responsibility ofthe enlargement and near total reconstruction of the new church. The works were completed in 1909. In the meantime, in 1878, Bishop Carmelo Scicluna separated the church of Stella Maris from its parent parish of Birkirkara, and it became the first parish church in Sliema. 
In 2018, Archbishop Charles Scicluna honoured the church of Stella Maris by giving it the title of Archpresbyteral with Mons. Anton Portelli appointed its first Archpriest.

The architecture of the church is a blend of elements from different periods, the most evident being Roman, Early Christian, Renaissance, Venetian and Victorian. It is a simple Latin cross plan church with a typical late Victorian façade, dominated by a large central bay.  The frontal space has two large niches with statues of Our Lady of Sorrows on the left, and  Saint Joseph holding the infant Jesus on the right. These statues were sculpted in stone by Maestro Anton Busuttil in 1875.

The titular statue of Stella Maris. It is made from resin and 'papier mache', and sculpted in Paris, France in 1891. It was then gilded by Coleiro Company in Valletta in 1915.  Our Lady is seen standing on clouds which are sitting on a bench-like plinth. She is accompanied by two angels. The plinth was designed by Rabat-based 
Carmel Borg and sculpted by Giuseppe Carabez in 1931.

 

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