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Original filePortrait of Pope Alexander VII Chigi
Italian: Ritratto di papa Alessandro VII Chigi Portrait of Pope Alexander VII Chigititle QS:P1476,it:"Ritratto di papa Alessandro VII Chigi "label QS:Lit,"Ritratto di papa Alessandro VII Chigi "label QS:Len,"Portrait of Pope Alexander VII Chigi"
About This Work
The Pope is shown from the chest up, wearing a red velvet camauro and a matching mozzetta with a white collar. He possesses a thin, elongated face with a dark mustache and a prominent pointed goatee. The background is a muted, dark gray, focusing all attention on the sitter's sharp features and ecclesiastical dress.
Alexander VII was a pivotal patron of the Jesuit polymath Athanasius Kircher, supporting his massive projects to synthesize Hermeticism, Egyptian hieroglyphs, and universal science. His papacy marks a final flowering of the Baroque attempt to reconcile Catholic orthodoxy with the Neoplatonic and 'prisca theologia' traditions of the Renaissance.
Connected Texts
Athanasius Kircher
Alexander VII was Kircher's primary patron, funding and providing the political backing for works like 'Oedipus Aegyptiacus'.