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The sculpture behind the Pope is The Resurrection (La Resurrezione), by Italian artist Pericle Fazzini. It stands in the Vatican’s Paul VI Audience Hall. Its turbulent shapes may look unsettling, but the Vatican identifies the work as Christ’s Resurrection—not a demonic figure.
What does the sculpture represent?
Fazzini conceived the scene as Christ rising serenely amid upheaval. The Vatican Museums describe his vision as “an explosion from the earth,” with olive trees, stones, clouds and lightning caught in an enormous storm. That is the museum’s English rendering of Fazzini’s description, not an independently verified English transcript. Vatican Museums: preparatory study for The Resurrection.
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The central figure’s identity is explicit in the Vatican’s accounts. At the 1977 inauguration, Paul VI called it “the monumental and unique figure of Jesus Christ risen, living and blessing.” In 2023, Pope Francis likewise referred to it as the sculpture of the Risen Christ. Paul VI’s 1977 inauguration address; Francis’s 2023 address.
Why can it look frightening?
The composition surrounds Christ with fractured, forceful forms suggesting an explosion and storm. The contrast between that disorder and the serene rising figure can make the sculpture feel ominous, especially in a photograph or from a distant view. “Demonic” is a viewer’s subjective reaction, not the subject given by Fazzini’s account or the Vatican’s identification of the work.
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- Handmade & Hand Painted in Greece
- The plaster we use is a 100% natural non-toxic Greek product and a material without any chemical additives.
- Dimensions (approximately): Height: 19 cm (7.48 inches) Width: 7 cm (2.75 inches) Depth: 6 cm (2.36 inches) Weight: 680 gr (1.49 lb)
Where is it, and when was it made?
It occupies the apse of the Paul VI Audience Hall, the Vatican venue where popes address audiences. Paul VI commissioned the work for the hall. The Vatican Museums say Fazzini began work in 1970 and spent around seven years completing it; it was inaugurated in 1977, on Paul VI’s eightieth birthday. Vatican Museums collection account.
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