The church was rebuilt in the Baroque style by Francesco Buonamici after suffering extensive damage in an explosion in 1634.

[1] It formed part of a Jesuit complex occupying an entire city block, which also included the Collegium Melitense (now the Old University Building) that was constructed between 1595 and 1602.

Most of the church, including its façade, was subsequently rebuilt in the Baroque style by the Luccan architect and engineer Francesco Buonamici.

[citation needed] The Jesuits were expelled from Malta by Grand Master Manuel Pinto da Fonseca in 1768, and the building became property of the Treasury of the Order of St. John.

[5][6][7] The church's altarpiece depicts the Circumcision of Jesus, and it is the work of the Italian artist Filippo Paladini [it].