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Veiled Christ (Italian language: Cristo velato) is a carved marble tomb effigy completed in 1753 by the Neapolitan artist Giuseppe Sanmartino. It is formed from a single block of white marble and was commissioned by Raimondo di Sangro, a prince of Sansevero, as the centrepiece of the Cappella Sansevero, in Naples, Italy.
It is regarded as Sanmartino’s masterpiece, largely due to the rendering of the transparent veil, and thus considered one of the world's most remarkable sculptures. Due to its life-like representation of the body of Jesus and the illusionary and trompe-l'œil veil, the sculpture was thought by many to have been created via alchemy.Albright (2013), p. 19Istvan, Rachel. " The Veiled Christ: Art or Alchemy?". DailyArt Magazine, 3 August 2022. Retrieved 2 July 2023
The 18th-century sculptor Antonio Canova tried to acquire the work, stating that he would willingly give ten years of his life to have produced something of similar quality.
The commission passed to the then young Italian sculptor Giuseppe Sanmartino, who was charged with producing "a marble statue sculpted with the greatest realism, representing Our Lord Jesus Christ in death, covered by a transparent shroud carved from the same block of stone as the statue."
Abandoning Corradini's earlier model, Sanmartino produced a sculpture with the dead Jesus lying on a couch, covered by a veil which adheres perfectly to his form. The mastery of the Neapolitan sculptor lies in his successful depiction, looking through the veil, of the suffering that Jesus had undergone during the crucifixion. Signs of Jesus's pain can be seen on his face and body. The sculpture became highly praised, and helped launch Sanmartino's career.
Shaping further detail into the marble block, Sanmartino placed depictions of the Arma Christi at Jesus's feet, including pliers, shackles, and the crown of thorns.
The work was produced in marble. This is also confirmed by some letters written at the time of its production. A receipt of payment to Sanmartino, dated 16 December 1752 and signed by the prince, is preserved in the Historical archive of the Bank of Naples and reads: "And you will pay the aforementioned fifty to the Magnificent Giuseppe Sanmartino on my behalf, for the statue of Our Lord in death covered by a veil also of marble" ( E per me gli suddetti ducati cinquanta gli pagarete al Magnifico Giuseppe Sanmartino in conto della statua di Nostro Signore morto coperta da un velo ancor di marmo). In other letters, di Sangro writes that the veil was produced from the same block of stone as the statue.
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