Melchiorre Cafà

Melchiorre Cafà was a Maltese sculptor of the Baroque era. He was the elder brother of the successful architect Lorenzo Gafà. He established a flourishing career in Rome where he moved around 1658. Already an accomplished sculptor, Cafà joined Ercole Ferrata’s workshop, where Ferrata likely helped refine his technique. Even after earning his own commissions, he maintained a close working relationship with Ferrata. In 1662 Cafà joined the Accademia di San Luca and was elected its principal in 1667, though he declined the position. Although extremely active throughout his brief career, he completed only a handful of major commissions himself. Cafà died tragically at the age of 31 on 4 September 1667 when material collapsed on him in the foundry of Saint Peter's, where he was working on the altar decoration for Saint John’s Co-Cathedral in Valletta.