Manuel Pinto da Fonseca. Grandmaster, 1741-1773. AV 4 Zecchini. First coinage. Valletta mint. Struck 1741-1756. Armored bust left / Crowned coat-of-arms.•
Manuel Pinto da Fonseca was a Portuguese nobleman, the 68th Grand Master of the Order of Saint John, from 1741 until his death.
He undertook many building projects, introducing the Baroque style throughout Malta.
The cost of these projects contributed to bankrupting the Order in the decades following his death.
His views were comparatively liberal. In 1764, he agreed to the re-unification with King Frederick II ("Frederick the Great") of Prussia and the Protestant Prussian branch of the Order, without, however, receiving the approval of Pope Clement XIII. The pope did agree, reluctantly.
Many knights of the Order of St. John, and some of the Maltese nobility, were freemasons. Grand Master Manuel Pinto da Fonseca was a 33rd degree Master Mason and other Grand Masters are reported also to have been freemasons, and influential in the spread of freemasonry in Malta.