Crucifix
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Crucifix , Christ , Crucifixion , Conservation , Saint Bridget of Sweden , Miracle
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Abstract
In the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament at San Paolo Fuori le Mura in Rome, constructed in 1725, stands a polychrome wooden crucifix that miraculously survived the 1823 fire, which destroyed much of the basilica. Attributions for the crucifix vary, with some suggesting Pietro Cavallini (1250–1330), Giovanni Pisano (1250–1315), or Tino di Camaino (1280–1337) from Siena. The church maintains the latter attribution, while Giorgio Vasari ascribed the work to Cavallini, who contributed mosaics to the basilica. A restoration between 1972 and 1974 by Fabrizio Mancinelli reattributed the crucifix to an unknown Roman or Tuscan artist, dating it to around 1310.
This late thirteenth- to early fourteenth-century crucifix holds deep historical significance. Saint Bridget of Sweden is said to have prayed before it in the mid-fourteenth century, and according to legend, the crucifix spoke or nodded to her. Saint Bridget was known for her devotion to the Passion of Christ, and the crucifix’s sharp head turn and contorted body may have deeply resonated with her graphic descriptions of Christ’s suffering in her text, Revelations of St. Bridget, On the Life and Passion of Our Lord and the Life of His Blessed Mother.
In the same chapel, a seventeenth-century marble statue by Stefano Maderno depicts Saint Bridget experiencing her miraculous vision in front of the crucifix.
Photograph(s) licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence.
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San Paolo Fuori le Mura, Rome
Citation
“San Paolo Fuori le Mura,” Roman Churches Wiki, last modified December 26, 2023, https://romanchurches.fandom.com/wiki/San_Paolo_fuori_le_Mura; Nicola Maria Camerlenghi, “The Life of the Basilica of San Paolo fuori le Mura in Rome: Architectural Renovations from the Ninth to the Nineteenth Centuries,” (PhD diss., Princeton Universtiy, 2007), 169-171; Bridget of Sweden, “The Passion of our Lord,” in Revelations of St. Bridget, on the life and passion of Our Lord, and the life of His Blessed Mother (New York: D. & J. Saduer & Co, 1862); “Basilica: In Occasione Dei Giubilei,” Basilica Papale San Paolo Fuori le Mura, https://www.vatican.va/various/basiliche/san_paolo/it/basilica/giubilei.htm.