 Funerary monument of Pope Alexander VII The funerary monument of Pope Alexander VII (r. 1655-67) was designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598-1680) and executed between 1671 and 1678. The monument is made up of six figures. At the apex Alexander VII, bare-headed, kneels in prayer. Below him are four female allegorical figures: in the foreground stand Charity and Truth, whose left foot rests on a globe; in the background are half-figures of Prudence and Justice. All five were carved out of white marble, while the sixth, Death, was cast in gilded bronze. Death is portrayed as a winged skeleton, bearing aloft an hour-glass; its head is shrouded in billowing drapery, a tour-de-force creation of travertine veneered with Sicilian jasper, the work of Gabriele Renzi. The monument was a collaboration between Bernini and his assistants, the latter doing most of the work under the close supervision of the master.  Funerary Monument of Pope Alexander VII (det.)  Funerary Monument of Pope Alexander VII (det.)  Winged skeleton with an hour-glass Comments are closed.
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My name is David Lown and I am an art historian from Cambridge, England.
Since 200I I have been living in Italy, where I run private tours of Florence, Rome & Venice. Search Pictures From Italy:
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January 2020
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