The grandiose funerary monument to Pope Benedict XIII (r. 1724-30), in the Dominican church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva, was designed by the architect-cum-sculptor, Carlo Marchionni (1702-86).
The monument is located in the Chapel of St Dominic, which was designed by Filippo Raguzzini (1690-1771) at the behest of Benedict XIII, who was, himself, a Dominican. The statue of the pope is by Pietro Bracci (1700-73). The two allegorical figures, who are leaning on the sarcophagus, represent Religion and Purity, the work, respectively, of Bartolomeo Pincellotti (1707-40) and Pietro Bracci. Marchionni executed the bas-relief. A grand total of five popes are interred in Santa Maria sopra Minerva. In addition to Benedict XIII, the church is the final resting place of Leo X (r. 1513-21), Clement VII (r. 1523-34), Paul IV (r. 1555-59) and Urban VII (1590). Comments are closed.
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My name is David Lown and I am an art historian from Cambridge, England. Since 2001 I have lived in Italy, where I run private walking tours of Rome.
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October 2023
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