Nothing is known of this wooden statue, except that it was given to Palazzo Venezia in 1920 by the Museo Nazionale di Castel Sant’Angelo. It depicts a nomad friar, as suggested by the habit, covered by a short mantle and the saddlebag over his left shoulder. In his right hand he is holding a rosary. It is difficult to identify the figure, whose attributes could be likened, for example, to Felix of Nicosia (1715-1787), of the Capuchin Order, who was beatified by Pope Leo XIII on 12 February 1888 (and proclaimed a saint by Pope Benedict XVI on 23 October 2005); it is also tricky to pinpoint the geographical and cultural origin of the work. Scientific analysis carried out in 2009 by IVALSA-CNR in Florence identified the wood used as tilia (Tilia sp.).

Grazia Maria Fachechi