The "
Beata Ludovica Albertoni" (completed 1674) is a funerary monument in the specially designed Altieri Chapel in the church of
San Francesco a RipaSan Francesco a Ripa is a church in Rome, Italy. It is dedicated to Francis of Assisi because the adjacent convent accommodated him, while the term Ripa refers to the nearby river-edge of the Tiber.-History:...
in
TrastevereTrastevere is rione XIII of Rome, on the west bank of the Tiber, south of Vatican City. Its name comes from the Latin trans Tiberim, meaning literally "beyond the Tiber". The correct pronunciation is "tras-TEH-ve-ray", with the accent on the second syllable. Its logo is a golden head of a lion on a...
, Rome, Italy.
The sculpture and its setting in the Chapel were designed by the
BaroqueThe Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
artist
Gian Lorenzo BerniniGian Lorenzo Bernini was an Italian artist who worked principally in Rome. He was the leading sculptor of his age and also a prominent architect...
.
It was commissioned from Bernini by Cardinal Paluzzi degli Albertoni, who had taken the name Altieri after the elevation of a kinsman of his family by marriage, who became
Pope Clement XPope Clement X , born Emilio Bonaventura Altieri, was Pope from 29 April 1670 to 22 July 1676.-Early life:Emilio Altieri was born in Rome, the son of Lorenzo Altieri and Victoria Delphini, a Venetian lady...
(1670-76). It is not clear how much Bernini was paid. He was seventy one years old when he began the work, and it was one of his last sculptures. The white marble figure represents the nun
Ludovica AlbertoniLudovica Albertoni , sometimes known as Louisa Albertoni or Ludovica Albertoni Cetera, is considered a blessed person in Christianity. Her feast day is January 31....
, a distant relative of the
CardinalA cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
, on her deathbed; she died in 1533. She is portrayed as experiencing both
mortalHumans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
suffering and
religious ecstasyReligious ecstasy is an altered state of consciousness characterized by greatly reduced external awareness and expanded interior mental and spiritual awareness which is frequently accompanied by visions and emotional/intuitive euphoria...
, surrounded by putti, and waiting to rise to the
Holy SpiritHoly Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...
. A recessed side window to the left helps to illuminate the sculptural subject.
The
altarpieceAn altarpiece is a picture or relief representing a religious subject and suspended in a frame behind the altar of a church. The altarpiece is often made up of two or more separate panels created using a technique known as panel painting. It is then called a diptych, triptych or polyptych for two,...
behind the sculpture is by Baciccio.
Similar Works
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- Antonio Giorgetti
Antonio Giorgetti was an Italian sculptor who passed his career in Rome, a disciple of Gian Lorenzo Bernini...
's Saint Sebastian (c. 1672) in San Sebastiano fuori le muraSan Sebastiano fuori le mura , or San Sebastiano ad Catacumbas , is a basilica in Rome, central Italy...
- Ercole Ferrata
Ercole Ferrata was an Italian sculptor of the Roman Baroque.-Biography:A native of Pellio Inferiore, near Como, Ferrata initially apprenticed with Alessandro Algardi, and became one of his prime assistants...
's statue of the dying Saint Anastasia in the Basilica di Sant'Anastasia al Palatino
- Sculpture of Saint Anne
Saint Hanna of David's house and line, was the mother of the Virgin Mary and grandmother of Jesus Christ according to Christian and Islamic tradition. English Anne is derived from Greek rendering of her Hebrew name Hannah...
in Sant'Andrea delle FratteSant'Andrea delle Fratte is a 17th-century basilica church in Rome, Italy, dedicated to St. Andrew. The Cardinal Priest of the Titulus S. Andreae Apostoli de Hortis is Ennio Antonelli....
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