Paradise Chapel (or the Coronation of the Virgin)
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Authors
Jean de Wespin and Nicolas de Wespin (i Tabachetti) and "a Milanese Sculptor" (Giuseppe Giovenone?)
Date
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Language
Keyword
Paradise , Virgin Mary , Coronation , Queen of Heaven , Trinity , Angels
Alternative Title
Abstract
This is the final chapel in the narrative progression at Crea's Sacro Monte. It sits at the highest point of the hill and reached by two monumental staircases. It was built on the ruins of the medieval castle of Cardalona and paid for by the Lateran monks who lived at the Sanctuary. The chapel itself is surrounded by an arcade, providing a panoramic view of the Alps, the plains, and the hills of Monferrato. That same landscape is repeated inside the chapel in the paintings by Guglielmo Caccia, eliding the distinction between interior and exterior space. In times of war, especially during the Wars of Monferrato between 1612 and 1698, the chapel was used as a guard tower to warn of enemy invasion. One hundred and seventy-three life-sized figures in terracotta and gesso are arranged around the dome and suspended from the ceiling of the chapel. They were modeled at the end of the sixteenth century by Jean de Wespin (c. 1567 - 1615) and his brother Nicolas, who were called I Tabachetti. Contemporary religious leaders, such as Carlo Borromeo, are depicted alongside church fathers, Hebrew prophets, and medieval saints. The sculpture of Moses is based directly on Michelangelo's design at San Pietro in Vincoli in Rome. Between the two staircases, beneath the main chapel, there was originally another room depicting hell, much like the chapel Galeazzo Alessi planned to build at Varallo. At least three statues personifying the vices of blasphemy, lust, and pride were completed for this scene, but these have been lost since at least 1683. The works inside this chapel have been restored repeatedly throughout their history. Antonio Brilla (1813 - 1910) added a number of new plaster figures in 1888 and restored the remaining sculptures the following year. There was another intervention led by Guido Capra (1890 - 1965) in 1935. Various restoration projects were undertaken between 1979 and 1995. The most recent conservation was conducted in 2019 - 2021. / The hill at Crea has used as a pilgrimage site since the Middle Ages, when locals began to honor a miraculous image of the Black Madonna that was said to have been brought there by Saint Eusebius (c. 283 - 371). A community of Augustinians occupied the monastery at Crea beginning in 1176, but they were succeeded by the Lateran Canons Regular, who cared for the sanctuary between 1482 and 1798. Since the Sacro Monte was founded in 1589, local rulers had a direct hand in supporting it, including the Paleologue and Gonzaga dukes of Monferrato. Most of the scenes have since been redesigned or replaced; only six of the twenty-three extant sculpture groups date to the site's original program, which illustrated the life of the Virgin Mary.
Description
Sacro Monte di Crea, Serralunga di Crea
Citation
Amilcare Barbero and Carlenrica Spantigati, Sacro Monte di Crea (Novi Ligure: SO.G.ED. Edizioni, 1998), 166 - 167; Attilio Castelli and Dionigi Roggero, Un Santuario mariano: il Sacro Monte di Crea (Casale Monferrato: Fondazione Sant'Evasio, 2000), 184 - 195; Francesco Maccono, Storia del santuario di Crea (Casale Monferrato: Tipografia Operaia Artigiana, 1981), 52; Francesco Negri, Santuario di Crea: Arte e storia nel Monferrato (Alessandria: Accademia degli Immobili, 1902), 56 - 58.