Secret meanings of encrypted messages and realistic sculptures in the tomb of San Severo di Sangro

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

The Chapel of San Severo di Sangro, in the past the tomb for a noble princely family, today is a famous Italian museum. This chapel contains extraordinary masterpieces of art created by famous Italian masters of the 18th century. The chapel and its treasures are shrouded in mystery. There are a lot of legends and myths about the creator of the chapel. All of these masterpieces are said to contain encrypted messages.

Among these works of art, in the center of the nave, is a sculpture of Jesus Christ covered with a shroud. The shroud is also carved out of marble, like the figure of Jesus. This shroud looks incredibly realistic transparent. Rumor has it that the creator of this sculpture put a real fabric on the figure of Christ, and then, using some mysterious chemical process, turned it into marble.

In general, the very construction of the Chapel is shrouded in all kinds of secrets and speculations. At the end of the 16th century, two amazing stories happened to the noble Sangro family. One man, unjustly accused of a crime he did not commit, was chained and led past Sangro's house. Suddenly, at the place where the plaster was crumbling, he saw the face of the Virgin Mary. The prisoner was shocked and made a vow that if he was acquitted, he would attach a silver medallion to this image. This man was acquitted and released. He fulfilled his oath.

Shortly thereafter, the Duke of Torremaggiore, Giovan Francesco di Sangro, had a misfortune - he was very seriously ill. After his miraculous recovery, he vowed to thank the Mother of God for this. In the garden of his family estate, in the center of Naples, he erected the chapel of Santa Maria della Pieta.

In 1608, the son of the Duke Giovan Francesco, Alessandro di Sangro, rebuilt the chapel and buried the remains of his ancestors there. After that, the chapel served as a family tomb. Gradually it began to decline and decay. In 1742, Raimondo di Sangro, the seventh prince of San Severo, decided to rebuild and reconstruct the family chapel. This reconstruction became his life's work. There were a lot of different conflicting rumors about this prince di Sangro. He was an inventor, alchemist and Grand Master of Neapolitan Freemasonry. Raimondo San Severo invited the best Italian sculptors and painters of that time to Naples: Nicola Maria Rossi, Antonio Corradini, Giuseppe Sanmartino, Francesco Maria Russo, Francesco Celebrano, Francesco Quirolo, Paolo Persico, Fortunato Onelli, Giacomo Lazzari.

Di Sangro himself supervised all the reconstruction works of the Capella. He personally designed the complete and harmonious architectural ensemble of the chapel. Inside, he filled it with beautiful pieces of art. Therefore, paying tribute to his labors, the Italians call the Capella San Severo, and not Santa Maria della Pieta. This is how the name of the di Sangro family was immortalized. The Chapel of San Severo has survived to this day, exactly as it was built by Raimondo di Sangro. The most mysterious and interesting for visitors are: marble sculpture "Christ under the Shroud", allegorical sculptures representing Christian virtues.

The chapel has a terracotta floor, the ceiling is decorated with the fresco "Glory of the Holy Spirit". There, among other things, there are tombstones of members of the di Sangro family, their monuments. Sculptures of virtues include: "Chastity", "Deliverance from the Enchantment", "Decency", "Generosity", "Religious Zeal", "Sincerity", "Education" and "Composure". The Chapel of San Severo also contains two models called anatomical machines. These are models from real bones of a man and a woman. The master very accurately recreated the human circulatory system in these models of bodies.

There is such a complex and thin network of arteries, veins and capillaries! All in various thicknesses, colors and lengths. The sculptor fastened the bones with metal pins, nails and wire. He specially sawed the skulls and made loops on both sides so that they could be opened and seen what was inside. It also has a very complex network of blood vessels. The exceptional accuracy of details in the reproduction of the circulatory system / led to rumors that San Severo had injected a special substance into his two servants in the blood. It was some kind of mercury-based chemical compound. He introduced this substance to them during their lifetime. As a result, their blood was transformed into metal, thereby keeping their circulatory system intact. But this is all speculation. Only bones are real in these models. All blood vessels are made of metal wires using colored wax and silk. This technique was common at the time, and the accuracy of the human circulatory system in these 18th century models, given the level of knowledge of those times, is worthy of praise and admiration.

The original version of the sculpture "Christ under the Shroud" was created by Antonio Corradini. He was a real master of his craft. He became famous for his amazingly delicate works depicting women who, due to the veils that Corradini so skillfully sculpted, hiding the contours of their bodies and facial features, became unreal, illusory. But Master Corradini died before he could finish his work. It was completed by a hitherto unknown sculptor named Giuseppe Sanmartino. The sculpture has acquired the features of Sanmartino's own unique style. The masterful completion of the Christ figure earned this artist additional commissions from the Bourbons and the important Neapolitan churches at the time.

The Chapel of San Severo keeps another sculpture by Antonio Corradini - "Chastity". He very skillfully embodied his skill in working with marble in his sculptures. They all seem to be covered with a weightless, transparent cloth that has been thrown over the body. In Chastity, the woman's figure is covered with a large veil that covers her entire body. The fabric emphasizes the breasts, but hides more and more intimate places of the female body so that it is not too overtly sexy.

Another masterpiece in the Chapel is "Liberation from the Enchantment." The sculpture depicts a fisherman entangled in his nets. This work was carved from one single piece of marble. The allegory represents the liberation of a person from their sins. It took sculptor Francesco Quirolo seven years to create this piece of art!

In his native Naples, the name of the seventh prince Raimondo di Sangri San Severo is still shrouded in many secrets, legends and all kinds of rumors. Most people believe that all the masterpieces of the San Severo Chapel are encrypted with his secret Masonic messages. This is the secret of the popularity and ineffable charm of this iconic Italian landmark, which is part of the world's cultural heritage.

Read the hidden meaning of famous works of famous artists and sculptors in the article Who Rodin Really Created "The Thinker" or "The Mourner": The True Meaning of Famous Works of Art.