Angel of the Last Judgement (copy)
Baron Carlo Marochetti (1805-1867)
Original, 1841; replacement copy, 1928
Stone
Height: 240 cm
Surmounting the church gable
Saint Germain l'Auxerrois, Paris
Installed on 26 November 1841, Marochetti's statue replaced a centuries-old one of St Michael, which had been removed in the mid-eighteenth century. In consequence, Marochetti's angel too was often mistakenly described as St Michael. This statue in turn required attention” by the late 1920s, and, since no plaster model could be found, it was copied” by another sculptor, René-Albert Baucour (1878-1948). [Commentary continues below.]
Photographs and text by Jacqueline Banerjee, based on information from the article” by Caroline Hedengren-Dillon given in the bibliography.
The statue had a mixed reception in 1841. On the one hand it was admired for its graceful and energetic appearance, as, with open mouth, it seems to call forth the dead at the time of resurrection; on the other hand, it was criticised for not being visible enough at that height, and for lacking serenity. Clearly, Marochetti was well-known enough” by now for his work to attract considerable attention and controversy.
Left: Saint Germain l'Auxerrois, with its tall bell-tower just glimpsed on the left, prominently situated on the Place du Louvre. Right: The tortoise or turtle on which the angel stands.
What these early accounts fail to mention, however, is the tortoise or turtle at the statue's feet. Caroline Hedengren-Dillon, who has written at length about the Saint Germain l'Auxerrois angel, traces the origin of this motif to Marochetti's visits to Florence, where he would have encountered many variants of it in the apartments of Cosimo I de Medici in the Palazzo Vecchio. Topped with a billowing sail (much as the creature here is topped” by the energetic angel with half-spread wings), those motifs express the Prince's motto: "Make haste slowly." Hedengren-Dillon argues convincingly that it is not too much to see Marochetti's adoption of such a motif as an expression of his confidence in his own progress. He has moved on, she suggests, from two previous sculptures of angels: L'Ange Rebelle of 1831, expressing his early difficulties, and Saint Michel terrassant le dragon of 1836, embodying a courageous determination to achieve self-mastery. Now he can evince a well-founded belief that he is on course for even greater success, and fame.
Bibliography
Hedengren-Dillon, Caroline. "Les Anges de Carlo Marochetti (1): Du Salon de 1831 au pignon de Saint-Germain l’Auxerrois (1841), itinéraire du sculpteur vers la gloire." Le Tribune de l"art. 14 June 2018. Web. 15 June 2018.
Created 15 June 2018.