The Cardinal Richelieu at The Louvre, Paris

cults3d

The Cardinal de Richelieu, Louis XIII's chief minister, poses majestically as a prelate, proudly sporting the Order of the Saint-Esprit on his chest. Commissioned by Bernini, a renowned sculptor and protégé of Pope Urban VIII at the height of his fame, this bust exudes an air of gravity and nobility, with every fold of Richelieu's clothing meticulously modeled. Richelieu had initially sought to commission a full-size statue from Bernini in 1640. However, negotiations were entrusted to Mazarin, the cardinal's trusted collaborator and future successor, as well as Marshal d'Estrée, France's ambassador to Rome. They needed to secure agreement not only from Bernini but also from his exclusive patrons, Cardinal Antonio Barberini and Pope Urban VIII. The pope expressed reservations about the full-size statue project, prompting Bernini to propose a more modest approach: starting with a bust. Work on the bust began in November 1640 and was completed by January 1641. It was then transported to Paris in August of that year. Mazarin warmly thanked Cardinal Barberini for his efforts, praising both Bernini's skill and his artwork. In private, however, he expressed some reservations about the bust, describing it as "very fine" but not entirely resembling Richelieu. Richelieu himself may have shared these sentiments, as he later commissioned a second bust from French sculptor Jean Warin.