Saint John's Co-Cathedral

St. John's Co-Cathedral is the co-cathedral of the Archdiocese of Malta in Valletta and one of the most extraordinary Baroque buildings in the Maltese islands. Built between 1573 and 1577 by the Maltese architect Girolamo Cassar as the conventual church of the Knights Hospitaller, its austere exterior hides an exuberant interior: gilded stone carving, a marble floor inlaid with the coats of arms of the knights, and a barrel vault frescoed by Mattia Preti. The Oratory holds two paintings by Caravaggio, including the monumental Beheading of St John the Baptist, his only signed work. The church is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Valletta. Visitors enter from Republic Street and can descend into the crypt of the grand masters.