Femme Voilée (la foi?), by Antonio Corradini, early to mid 1700s, in the Louvre. Photo credit. I’ll go back and take my own photo of it sometime.
Veiled Lady, possibly by Raffaele Monti, 1860s, in Chatsworth House, or else a reproduction of Monti’s Veiled Lady, the internet refuses to tell me. Photo credit.
If you are a female between the ages of 13 and 60, you will surely recognize the second sculpture from one of your all-time favorite films. (Any guesses?) The shot of the Veiled Lady has stuck in my mind since the first time I watched the movie. It’s incredible how soft and diaphanous the fabric looks, though it is carved from marble. There’s something beautiful/bizarre about it, and you know that that is my favorite combination of adjectives.
So imagine my pleasure when I found the Femme Voilée at the Louvre this afternoon! It’s interesting to compare the two — level of detail, etc. It even seems like the types of fabric are different. The Louvre is lovely. My afternoon was free, so I decided to make good use of my Sorbonne art history ID card which lets me into any national museum gratuit. I can’t tell you how nice it was to stroll the halls knowing that I had the time to do so, unlike the other tourists who power-walked past me snapping pictures of paintings instead of looking at them.
Epiphany: I like looking at sculptures much, much more than looking at paintings, at least when it comes to Renaissance/early modern art.
Eek! What movie? I googled this sculpture…nothing. I wikipedia’d “femme voilée”…nothing. I wikipedia’d “veiled lady” and was redirected to Phallus indusiatus. Before I had the chance to get creeped out by the scientific name, I found out that this is also a term for the stinkhorn fungus, also know as the veiled lady.
So all I can think of for the answer to the movie is Jules et Jim, but I doubt that’s right.
Pride and Predjudice!!!!!
Yes! I fell in love with the statue!
Yeah, what movie? Jordan, I’m like 99.9% it doesn’t appear in Jules et Jim…… I feel ignorant but I have no clue what film this could be….
Is it weird that I think I know this? Is it even weirder that it is one of my dad’s favorite movies and he enjoys it much more than I do?
Pride and Prejudice? the 2005 one with Keira Knightley?
100% agreed on the epiphany. And marble >> than bronze castings.
I have a postcard from a certain someone posted on my wall.
Thanks.
This is rRaffaelle Monti ‘Veiled Vestal’ ~ he had many aliases, and wrote and spelled his name in several different ways
I have a number of items for sale by the artist.
I’M Therefore
It’s magnificent… I found this piece online last night.. amazing. Being a sculptor myself.. I can only admire the ability.
This sculpture is from Pride & Prejudice the newer one with Keira Knightly and i can’t remember the actor who played Darcy. This sculture is AMAZING! It blows my mind how Monti sculpted this woman. The fact that the sculpture is one piece of marble is incredible! I’m doing a critical essay on this sculpture for school and i’m really excited!!
If you loved the ‘Veiled Vestal’, please check out sculptor Giovanni Maria Benzoni’s (1809-1873) Veiled Rebecca. It is believed that he made four copies (not duplicates). One is in Hyderabad, India at the Salar Jung Museum, one is at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, GA (my personal favorite), another is at Berkshire Museum in Pittsfield, MA. Do not know the location of the fourth.
The detail of these statues is breathtaking. Also, the veil is so realistic you almost believe if you blow on it softly, it would move!
Mr. Darcy is played by Matthew Macfadyen in the later production of ‘Pride and Prejudice”. Thank you for the photo of the Veiled Lady by Monti which is located in the Sculpture Gallery of Chatsworth House, Derbyshire in the U.K. (Darcy’s house in the movie). This is on my ‘must see’ list next opportunity I have to visit the U.K.
I totally agree with you. This is a must see
The fourth copy, which is also the copy featured in Pride and Prejudice, is indeed at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire, UK. You can buy a reproduction of it in their gift shop. It has been moved from the Sculpture Gallery to another room and is magnificent. I have seen it several times and it never fails to take my breath away.
I pause my DVD of Pride and Prejudice just so I can study this picture of the “Veiled Lady” sculpture. I know nothing of sculpture techniques and marvel at whatever process was used to carve this figure. I’d love to know what and how that process is implemented.
I saw her for the first time in the movie.. Like Nikki, I paused and was irritated that they didn’t show more of that marble masterpiece. As an artist and sculptor, I’m just in aw of this incredible work of art. It still is in my mind, that first view, sorta like your first kiss, it’s always there in your mind.
Beautiful sculptures, really beautiful… I almost want to take off their veils and see their faces … then I remember, the veil is a sculpture also…
Pride & Prejudice is the best movie in this decade for me… but well, i’m a romantic person.
Thanks for to share this wonderful page Camille.
How many Veiled Lady’s were made? My great grandmother purchased it from the crystal palace museum in london after it burned down in the 30′s. Anyone know how many he made and where they are? I know one is in a minnesota museum. Any idea the value? Thanks!