Discovering the original main altar at St John's Conventual Church : the first step towards the Baroque grand interior

Abstract

When St John's conventual church was completed in the year 1577, the appearance of the interior was significantly different to what one sees today. In contrast with the exuberant embellishment it was simple and plain. The only possible accessories would have been a simple stone main altar with the mannerist style altarpiece depicting The Baptism of Christ by Perez d' Aleccio. During recent conservation works, where the marble tiles were lifted, emerged the original stone steps that once led to the main altar at the back of the church. The significance of this discovery is the subject of this paper. Considering that most of the marble and gilded carvings took place in the seventeenth century it is evident that the presbytery had a very different arrangement.