Ta' Pinu Basilica

A voice from a small chapel

On 22 June 1883, Karmela Grima, a simple woman from the village of Gharb, was walking past an old 16th-century chapel in an open field. She heard a voice saying in Maltese: "Come, come." She entered the chapel and before the image of Our Lady heard the voice again, asking for three Hail Marys. A few weeks later, her friend Francesco Portelli had a similar experience at the same spot.

Miracles and the building of the shrine

After the apparition, reports of healings and miracles attributed to prayer in the chapel multiplied. The Catholic Church formally investigated and approved construction of a new basilica. Work lasted from 1920 to 1932. Architects incorporated the original 16th-century chapel into the new structure, so it stands behind the main altar.

Architecture and interior

The neo-Romanesque basilica features a long nave with mosaics, paintings, and marble imported from across Europe. Side corridors are filled with hundreds of votive thanksgiving plaques from pilgrims describing healings and graces received. Pope John Paul II visited in 1990 and crowned the image of Our Lady.

Practical tip: The basilica stands alone amid fields, about 1.5 km from Gharb. The Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) with 14 stations leads from the village to the basilica and is beautiful at sunset.