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Veiled Christ

Veiled Christ

Giuseppe Sanmartino

Location
Cappella Sansevero, Naples, Italy
Client / Owner
Raimondo di Sangro
Year
Completed 1753
Access
Tickets required
Typology
Cultural
Style
—

The Veiled Christ is a marble sculpture in the Cappella Sansevero in Naples, Italy. Giuseppe Sanmartino carved it in 1753 for Raimondo di Sangro, prince of Sansevero. Sanmartino took over after Antonio Corradini died and set aside the terracotta model Corradini had left.

The work is carved from a single block of marble and measures 20 by 31 by 71 inches (50 by 80 by 180 centimeters). Christ lies on a couch under a transparent veil. The veil is carved from the same block and is the work's main achievement. Signs of suffering show through it on the face and body.

At the feet lie the instruments of the Passion, including pliers, shackles and a crown of thorns. A legend says Raimondo di Sangro, an alchemist, turned a cloth veil to marble. A payment receipt from December 1752 describes the veil as marble. Antonio Canova reportedly tried to acquire the work.

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