may have had himself represented as the saint. Saint Jerome was thus a very important painting for the artist. The subject seems oddly unmartial for a commission by a man whose raison d'etre was to fight the TurksSt Jerome was venerated as the translator of the Bible, which he is seen doing here. But Malaspina was not only a famous warrior, he was also a commissioner for the poor, orphans, and widows, and the painting may have been intended to emphasise both this aspect of his work and also the asceticism of the Order. Ippolito Malaspina arrived in Malta at the end of the Great Siege of 1565. He landed with the 'Grande Soccorso' and was present in the final onslaught on the invading Ottoman forces. Therefore, this knight indeed witnessed the final stages of the Great Siege. He was also a relative, if not the brother or cousin, of Vespasianus Malaspina who died a martyr's death whilst courageously fighting the Ottoman soldiery in Fort Saint Elmo. A depiction of Vespasianus Malaspina is found within the Co-Cathedral of Saint John on the right hand side of a window just above the chapel dedicated to the Langue of Italy. Therefore, Ippolito must have reached the Island to aid his brethren however his relative, amongst others, died a Catholic martyrs death. Previously to his Maltese residence, Ippolito Malaspina was Admiral of the Papal Fleet. The Catholic martyrs are unfortunately not much remembered by the Maltese, however a collective remembrance day referred to as Victory Day is celebrated on September 8, Feast dedicated to the Nativity of Our Lady, also known as Our Lady of Victory on the Islands. Theft In December 1984, the painting was stolen from the St. John's Co-Cathedral. The canvas was cut out of the frame. Two years later, following numerous telephone negotiations between the thieves and the then Director of Museums in Malta and Gozo, Fr. Marius J. Zerafa, the painting was recovered. The masterpiece was damaged and needed restoration before it was put on display again. The theft and recovery were covered in The Caravaggio Heist, a 2021 episode of the PBS series Secrets of the Dead. and a written full account of the theft and successful recovery had been recorded by Fr. Marius J. Zerafa in his book Caravaggio Diaries. 3 Euro Coin In 2022 the Central Bank of Malta issued two '3 euro coins' depicting