The statue of Elijah is a marble statue by the

Italian Renaissance sculptor Italian Renaissance sculpture was an important part of the art of the Italian Renaissance, in the early stages arguably representing the leading edge. The example of Ancient Roman sculpture hung very heavily over it, both in terms of style and t ...

Lorenzetto Lorenzo Lotti, also known as Lorenzetto, (1490–1541), born Lorenzo di Lodovico di Guglielmo, was an Italian Renaissance sculptor and architect in the circle of Raphael. He was born in Florence and married the sister of Giulio Romano, another ...

in the niche to the right of the entrance in the

Chigi Chapel The Chigi Chapel or Chapel of the Madonna of Loreto ( it, Cappella Chigi or Cappella della Madonna di Loreto) is the second chapel on the left-hand side of the nave in the Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo in Rome. It is the only religious build ...

, the

Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo it, Basilica Parrocchiale Santa Maria del Popolo , image = 20140803 Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo Rome 0191.jpg , caption = The church from Piazza del Popolo , coordinates = , image_size ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. The sculptor followed the original designs of his mentor,

Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael (; or ; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. List of works by Raphael, His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of ...

, who was the architect of the chapel. The statue was finished by his pupil,

Raffaello da Montelupo Raffaello da Montelupo (c. 1504/1505 – c. 1566/1567), born Raffaele Sinibaldi, was a sculptor and architect of the Italian Renaissance, and an apprentice of Michelangelo. He was the son of another Italian sculptor, Baccio da Montelupo. Both f ...

History

The statue of Prophet Elijah was part of the original decorative scheme of the chapel by Raphael. The main iconographic themes in the funerary chapel of

Agostino Chigi Agostino Andrea Chigi (29 November 1466 – April 11, 1520) was an Italian banker and patron of the Renaissance. Born in Siena, he was the son of the prominent banker Mariano Chigi, a member of the ancient and illustrious Chigi family. He moved ...

was resurrection and ascension of the soul to heaven. The two statues of Jonah and Elijah could be interpreted in this context: Prophet

Jonah Jonah or Jonas, ''Yōnā'', "dove"; gr, Ἰωνᾶς ''Iōnâs''; ar, يونس ' or '; Latin: ''Ionas'' son of Amittai, is a prophet in the Hebrew Bible and the Quran, from Gath-hepher of the northern kingdom of Israel in about the 8th cent ...

is the prototype of the Christ of the Resurrection, while

Elijah Elijah ( ; he, אֵלִיָּהוּ, ʾĒlīyyāhū, meaning "My God is Yahweh/YHWH"; Greek form: Elias, ''Elías''; syr, ܐܸܠܝܼܵܐ, ''Elyāe''; Arabic: إلياس or إليا, ''Ilyās'' or ''Ilyā''. ) was, according to the Books of ...

of the Christ of the Ascension. In the

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

"Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven" on a chariot of fire (2 Kings 2:11). But

Giorgio Vasari Giorgio Vasari (, also , ; 30 July 1511 – 27 June 1574) was an Italian Renaissance Master, who worked as a painter, architect, engineer, writer, and historian, who is best known for his work ''The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculpt ...

emphasized another aspect of Elijah's story in his description:

"...an Elijah, living by Grace, with his cruse of water and his bread baked in the ashes, under the juniper-tree."

Fabio Chigi repeated this in a letter. The statue was carved by Lorenzetto, Raphael's pupil, but unlike its counterpart, the statue of

Jonah and the whale Jonah or Jonas, ''Yōnā'', "dove"; gr, Ἰωνᾶς ''Iōnâs''; ar, يونس ' or '; Latin: ''Ionas'' son of Amittai, is a prophet in the Hebrew Bible and the Quran, from Gath-hepher of the northern kingdom of Israel in about the 8th cent ...

it was far from being finished at the time when Raphael died in 1520, and consequently the final version could be more removed from his original (lost) designs. A young assistant sculptor,

recorded in his autobiography that he completed the statue around 1523/24. Both the Jonah and the Elijah remained in Lorenzetto's workshop for a long time as

Vasari Giorgio Vasari (, also , ; 30 July 1511 – 27 June 1574) was an Italian Renaissance Master, who worked as a painter, architect, engineer, writer, and historian, who is best known for his work ''The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculpt ...

records in his ''Lives''. Lorenzetto died in 1541 but ten years later, in 1552 Lorenzo Leone Chigi paid his debt towards the heirs of Lorenzetto, and the two statues were finally placed in the chapel. They were supposedly located on the two sides of the entrance, at least this was their recorded position when

Fabio Chigi Pope Alexander VII ( it, Alessandro VII; 13 February 159922 May 1667), born Fabio Chigi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 April 1655 to his death in May 1667. He began his career as a vice-papal legate, and ...

first visited the chapel in 1626. The statue of Elijah was on the left of the entrance then. Between 1652 and 1656

Gian Lorenzo Bernini Gian Lorenzo (or Gianlorenzo) Bernini (, , ; Italian Giovanni Lorenzo; 7 December 159828 November 1680) was an Italian sculptor and architect. While a major figure in the world of architecture, he was more prominently the leading sculptor of his ...

restored the chapel, and created two new statues ( ''Habakkuk and the Angel'', ''Daniel and the Lion'') to fill the remaining empty niches. At the time the statue of Elijah was moved to its present place on the right of the entrance.

Description

The statue shows the prophet in the desert with an angel. The surroundings are carefully detailed especially the tangled roots and plants below the prophet's feet and the part of the tree which grows up behind. Elijah is depicted as a bearded older man with the usual attributes of the water-jug and a book. He is looking up towards the sky which means that he is gazing at the ''oculus'' of the dome where the figure of God appears. There is a disagreement about the originally intended place of the statue.

John Shearman John Kinder Gowran Shearman (pronounced "Sherman"; 24 June 1931 – 11 August 2003) was an English art historian who also taught in America. He was a specialist in Italian Renaissance painting, described by his colleague James S. Ackerman as "th ...

thought that it was most likely planned for one of the two niches by the entrance which means that its present position is probably correct.John Shearman: The Chigi Chapel in S. Maria del Popolo, Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes, Vol. 24, No. 3/4 (Jul. - Dec., 1961)

Notes

{{Raphael Renaissance sculptures Raphael Elijah Artworks in Santa Maria del Popolo