The Veiled Christ in the Sansevero Chapel
The most famous marble veil in the world, carved by Giuseppe Sanmartino
In a small street in the historic centre of Naples, the Sansevero Chapel holds one of the most astonishing sculptures ever made: the Veiled Christ, carved in 1753 by Giuseppe Sanmartino. The dead Christ lies on a mattress, covered by a veil so thin and transparent that you can see the features of the face and the wounds beneath it, all carved from a single block of marble. Antonio Canova said he would have given ten years of his life to have made it.
The chapel was transformed in the eighteenth century by Raimondo di Sangro, Prince of Sansevero, an alchemist, inventor and Freemason surrounded by legends. Other masterpieces include the Disillusion, a man freeing himself from a marble net, and Modesty, a veiled woman. In the basement are the mysterious "anatomical machines", two skeletons with their circulatory system preserved.
Tip: photography is not allowed and the chapel is small, so book a timed ticket online, especially at weekends.
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