Jesuits, Rosicrucions, and Masons, Oh My! Sinister Sites: Sansevero Chapel

Please don't get me wrong, the Sangro Family Mausoleum is steeped with symbolism. However, we are charged to bring forth truth out of sensationalism, rumors, legends, and centuries-old slander.

• Raimondo di Sangro was not a member of the Society of Jesus.

• The Sangro Family Mausoleum was not built atop a Temple of Isis, nor dedicated to Isis.

• The Sansevero Chapel is a family mausoleum, not a place of depravity.

• The Vigilant Citizen's triad of Modesty, Disillusion, and the Veiled Christ is an extremely bias, illogical, and out-of-context derivation.

This thread has already garnered anti-Masonic sentiments. It's best to dig directly into the facts of the matter, and discard agenda driven sensationalism.





Let's get to some real mystery!,... shall we?



A dove in the center of the Heavenly Light, holding an Illuminating Triangle.





Sincerity, holding a heart in her left hand and a caduceus in her right hand. The cherub has two doves. This Virtue's column is one of two columns draped by a pyramid.





Sweetness of the Marital Yoke is also draped by a pyramid. Her stomach/womb draws the eye as the focal point, her right hand holds two flaming hearts, and her left hand holds a feathered-yoke. Her cherub grasps a pelican in its right hand.





Religious Zeal, holding a lamp and whip, is seen standing atop books containing serpents. A cherub beats the serpents with a torch.





The Altar depicts the death of Jesus. The Illuminating dove descends, and the trees on either side have been cut. Are the cherubs holding the Shroud of Turin?





Check out those beautiful roses. Take note of the broken tablet, the tree, and the urn. Though the Temple of Isis folklore holds little weight, the Chapel's website has this to say about Modesty's;

The intention of commemorating Cecilia Gaetani is not the only meaning of this statue. The veiled woman can be interpreted as an allegory of Wisdom, and the reference to the veiled Isis, special divinity of the science of initiation, appears extremely clear (without considering that a long tradition, in reality unsubstantiated, holds that Modesty is situated in the place where once a statue of Isis stood in the Greek Neapolis). The art historians Joseph Rickwert and Rosanna Cioffi have also shown that the Veiled Truth engraved in the centre of the title page of the Encyclopédie is very similar to Corradini’s Modesty, and the sculptor’s association with Freemasonry is documented. The oak that bursts out of the naked stone, lastly, is held by some to be an allusion to the arbor philosophica.

a reply to: FauxMulder

Excellent Thread!
What a great read and Pix.
Thanks for your efforts.

These fabulous mysteries,
and those that notice them,
are what makes ATS great.

All The Best To You, S&F

a reply to: FauxMulder
While I agree with Sahabi's posts, I still enjoyed your thread.

a reply to: LightSpeedDriver
Wow. What a hateful and destructive attitude.

a reply to: LightSpeedDriver

so f#cking sick
of everyone dumping on Masons , Rosicrucian's

all the worlds evil blah blah blah
just parrot what others say and think

how many illegal activities have you personally witnessed Masons do ?
none

you think everyone who works at the Red cross is a saint
or everyone at your local country club is an evil villain

the anti masonic sentiment displayed on this site
puts me off coming here

yes its a f#cking rant...

a reply to: Sahabi

Nice research Sahabi! I agree VC sensationalizes a lot that's why I was slightly sarcastic with some aspects of the OP. I just like the dark / conspiratorial angle VC takes. Makes for an interesting read and brain exercise. You did a great job digging into everything here.

As far as the anti Mason sentiment I think you'll always find that in a place like ATS. Any secret society will invite conspiracies and speculation just by their existence alone, some of it warranted but most of it BS.

a reply to: FauxMulder

Hello again FauxMulder!

Thanks! That sure is a funny meme! When I find something new of interest, I'm often like a dog with a bone; I find it difficult to let go. The Sansevero Chapel is marvelous and I couldn't get it off my mind yesterday.

Here is little more of what I discovered:

These statues are certainly the focal point of the Prince of Sansevero’s original iconographic design. In fact, they represent different Virtues, stages on a pathway to initiation leading to interior knowledge and perfection.

Iconographic Design

I mapped out the location of each Virtue to gain a perspective of Raimondo di Sangro's path of Initiation:





The pyramids are another point of interest. Four Virtues each contain one-side of a pyramid, creating a 3-dimensional pyramid when brought together:

• Education
• Liberality
• Sincerity
• Sweetness of the Marital Yoke

Behind the figure is sculpted in marble – as defined in the Short note, an eighteenth-century guide to the Palace and the Sansevero Chapel – a “kind of pyramid”. It is, to be more precise, one of the four faces of a pyramid with its pyramidion, symbolically completed by the other three faces placed behind the Sweetness of the Marital Yoke, Sincerity and Education. The pyramid is a decorative element frequently used in Western funeral iconography, and according to Ripa’s Iconologia, it is suited to the representation of the “glory of the Princes”.

However, Raimondo di Sangro’s culture, the references he makes in the Lettera Apologetica to Hermes Trismegistus and the works of Athanasius Kircher (famous seventeenth-century Egyptologist) and, lastly, the many elements alluding to the initiatic tradition throughout the Sansevero Chapel lead to the supposition that the presence of the pyramid is a symbolic reference to ancientEgyptian Wisdom and the prisca theologia.

According to the grand scheme of Raimondo di Sangro, the Veiled Christ was not supposed to be placed in the nave of the chapel, but was intended to be placed in the Underground Chamber for symbolic reasons:

The Veiled Christ, a world artistic masterpiece, was to have been – in the intention of the Prince – located in the Underground Chamber designed by di Sangro himself, in the Underground Chamber that was also to be have been used to house the future tombs of the Sansevero family, but which was never finished as the Prince envisaged it (the present appearance of the Chamber is the result of work completed after his death). The Christ by Giuseppe Sanmartino was to have been illuminated by the flame of a perpetual lamp, invented by the Prince of Sansevero; it too evocative of esoteric symbolism.

Above all, the centre of the underground temple would have housed Sanmartino’s Veiled Christ, lit by two eternal lamps designed by the Prince and placed at the feet and head of the statue. It is not known with absolute certainty whether the Christ was ever placed there, but it is highly improbable. A slab of marble placed at the centre of the Chamber shows the intention of di Sangro to place the Neapolitan sculptor’s masterpiece here.

This cave tomb (the Prince described it as “une éspèce de caveau”), illuminated by a perpetual flame and enriched by the beauty of the Veiled Christ, was meant to have, within the overall design of the Chapel, a symbolic role which was far from secondary for its designer.

originally posted by: kibric
a reply to: LightSpeedDriver

so f#cking sick
of everyone dumping on Masons , Rosicrucian's

all the worlds evil blah blah blah
just parrot what others say and think

how many illegal activities have you personally witnessed Masons do ?
none

you think everyone who works at the Red cross is a saint
or everyone at your local country club is an evil villain

the anti masonic sentiment displayed on this site
puts me off coming here

yes its a f#cking rant...

I ststed an opinion, nothing more. You first get your panties in a wad and then begin with logical fallacies. Way to go!

Regardless, have a nice day

ETA: Perhaps I could have worded it differently. I hate the Masonic organisation. There.

a reply to: knowledgehunter0986

I was an engraver for 20 years. I did carving every day. I know a little about what is possible.
Check my sig link and then we'll talk about detail.

a reply to: Asktheanimals

Holy crap am I glad I clicked that link! That is truly amazing. The drawings look like real pictures. Whenever I draw, I have this amazing picture in my head but when I put it to paper it comes out like a kindergarten art project. My best friend is an amazing artist like you and it always amazes me to see new stuff. Also love those rifles a lot

a reply to: Asktheanimals

Hey I was only being sarcastic lol.

Obviously it wasn't mystical powers or aliens.

I know it's possible to reach that detail, and I also know how difficult it is.

I'm in awe of the skill level and patience it takes to sculpt something like this.



Also your link - amazing work

a reply to: knowledgehunter0986

I am too. It's one thing to take steel or gold which have a nice consistency to work with but marble? Every piece is unique and you can't see what's behind that bit you're carving - there could be a gap, you never know. Marble sculptors represent the very finest in art and craftsmanship because of the issues working with natural materials. These works are truly astounding by any measure.

a reply to: FauxMulder

Thx Faux.

a reply to: Asktheanimals

I was a stone fabricator for about 10 years, I worked with all types of stones from granite to marble, and marble is by far the most delicate and difficult to work with. These sculptor's are definitely the pinnacle of fine artistry.

a reply to: LightSpeedDriver

your completely right
no one should defend the Masons
no one backs you up if you do eh ?

unwarranted hate should always be allowed be expressed
without any rational counterpoint to it..

I hate Masons
I hate Masons
I hate Masons

There.

Amazing sculptures.
The veils are like they were tossed over the statues and somehow magically transformed into stone or marble. Are the veils made of the same stone as what's under them?
Alchemy at its finest

Thabks for sharing this is fantastic. The marble work is so mind blowing.

There is something so erotic about La pudicizia it is disturbing.

He almost certainly did not "dabble in human sacrifice and experimentation." At that time, those were extremely common accusations/ rumors about any somewhat mysterious figure who happened to have an interest in chemicals or other esoteric (for the time) subjects, or belong to a secret society, or blah blah blah. Much like how all non-Christians or heretical sects were accused of practicing Sodomy and human sacrifice. None of them actually did. It was just propaganda and hearsay. Which is almost certainly the case with this guy, as well. Just a blanket accusation against people with those interests. Same as how many people today assume that anybody who listens to heavy metal worships satan.
"Oh, he messes with chemicals? He's probably a sorcerer. Oh, he's a sorceror? He probably sacrifices humans."

Cool. But nitpick:

He almost certainly did not "dabble in human sacrifice and experimentation." At that time, those were extremely common accusations/ rumors about any somewhat mysterious figure who happened to have an interest in chemicals or other esoteric (for the time) subjects, or belong to a secret society, or blah blah blah. Much like how all non-Christians or heretical sects were accused of practicing Sodomy and human sacrifice. None of them actually did. It was just propaganda and hearsay. Which is almost certainly the case with this guy, as well. Just a blanket accusation against people with those interests. Same as how many people today assume that anybody who listens to heavy metal worships satan.
"Oh, he messes with chemicals? He's probably a sorcerer. Oh, he's a sorceror? He probably sacrifices humans."