Giovanni Barbara

He was Capomastro delle Opere della Religione, the principal architect of the Order of St. John, from 1681 until Francesco Zerafa became his assistant in 1714 and eventually succeeded him.

The town's parish priest, Don Anton Camillieri, invited Barbara and Lorenzo Gafà to prepare designs for the church, and Barbara's design was chosen.

[6] He designed a skew arch at Sa Maison in Floriana,[clarification needed] which was a marvel of construction and became known as the arco Barbara.

[8] Several other buildings, such as the Church of St. James in Valletta, and Palazzo Vilhena and the Seminary in Mdina, are sometimes also attributed to Barbara.

[10] The Mdina Seminary was completed in 1740, around ten years after the death of Barbara.