39
Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini (Napoli, 1598 - Roma, 1680)Design by
Christ, 17th-18th century
Bronze, transparent golden patina, hollow lost wax casting
42 x 33 x 7 cm
Gian Lorenzo Bernini created, with the help of Ercole Ferrara, a sculptor from Como who moved to Rome, 25 crucifixes for the altars of St. Peter's Basilica. Of these, 23 are still visible, as one has gone missing and another is in the Vatican deposits. Of the twenty-three, eighteen represent the living Christ, five the dead Christ.
The Crucifix presented here repeats the same model as the living one. It is impossible here to delve into whether other Roman foundries could copy Bernini's models, or whether we are faced with a later workshop copy. What is certain is that the model is very rare and faithfully repeats the one conceived by Bernini and created by Ercole Ferrata in the mid-17th century.
Models identical to ours at the Bode Museum in Berlin and at the Princeton University Art Museum.
Live auction 306
Sculpture and Small Bronzes from 15th to 19th Century
Palazzo Caetani Lovatelli, fri 28 June 2024
SINGLE SESSION 28/06/2024 Hours 16:00