A receipt of payment to Sanmartino, dated 16 December 1752 and signed by the prince, is preserved in the Historical archive of the Bank of Naples and states: EnglishĪnd you will pay the aforementioned fifty ducats to the Magnificent Giuseppe Sanmartino on my behalf, for the statue of Our Lord in death covered by a veil also of marble.Į per me gli suddetti ducati cinquanta gli pagarete al Magnifico Giuseppe Sanmartino in conto della statua di Nostro Signore morto coperta da un velo ancor di marmo. This is also confirmed by some letters written at the time of its production. In reality, a close analysis leaves no doubt that the work was entirely produced in marble. He was said to have laid a real veil on the sculpture, and to have transformed this veil into marble, over time, by means of a chemical process. Over the years many visitors to the Cappella, amazed by the veiled sculpture, erroneously believed it to be the result of an alchemical "marblification" performed by the prince.
#Christ unveiled how to#
Over the centuries, the masterly depiction of the veil has acquired a legend, in which the original commissioner of the sculpture, the famous scientist and alchemist Raimondo di Sangro, teaches the sculptor how to transform cloth into crystalline marble. Shaping further detail into the marble block, at Jesus's feet Sanmartino has carved depictions of the instruments of the passion: pliers, shackles, and the crown of thorns.
Signs of Jesus's pain can be seen on his face and body. The mastery of the Neapolitan sculptor lies in his successful depiction, looking through the veil, of the suffering that Christ had undergone during the crucifixion. Sanmartino produced a work with the dead Christ laid on a couch, covered by a veil which adheres perfectly to his form. The job thus passed to Giuseppe Sanmartino, who was charged with producing "a marble statue sculpted with the greatest realism, representing Our Lord Jesus Christ in death, covered by a transparent shroud carved from the same block of stone as the statue." However, Corradini died a short time later, having produced only a terracotta bozzetto (today displayed at the Museo Nazionale di San Martino). Veiled Christ 's production was originally assigned to the sculptor Antonio Corradini, who specialized in veiled statues. Terracotta bozzetto by Antonio Corradini displayed in the Museo Nazionale di San Martino
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