It was formerly located at Admiralty House between 1974 and 2016, when it was known as the National Museum of Fine Arts (Maltese: Mużew Nazzjonali tal-Arti).

The museum was inaugurated on 7 May 1974, and it was located at Admiralty House, an 18th-century palace which was formerly the official residence of the Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet.

[2] The National Museum of Fine Arts, at the Admiralty House, was inaugurated by Minister of Education and Culture Agatha Barbara on 7 May 1974.

[4] In September 2014, it was announced that the move will occur and the new museum would be called MUŻA (from the Maltese acronym Mużew Nazzjonali tal-Arti).

The present building dates back to 1761–63, when it was reconstructed in the Baroque style for the Portuguese knight Fra Raimondo de Sousa y Silva.

Apart from the museum itself, the area contains several fine historical palaces dating from the times of the Order of St. John that are now used by government ministries and departments.

The works of other artists on display included Guido Reni (1575–1642), the Caravaggisti Valentin de Boulogne (1591–1632), Giuseppe Ribera (1591–1662) and Matthias Stom (1600–1652), as well as Carlo Maratta (1625–1713) and Bernardo Strozzi (1581–1644).