The Prophet Daniel

LISBOA, Antonio Francisco (Aleijadinho)
(b. ca. 1738, Vila Rica, d. 1814, Vila Rica)
The Prophet Daniel
1800-05
Stone
Sanctuary of Congonhas do Campo, Brazil

Between 1800 and 1805, Aleijadinho executed twelve stone statues of prophets, just over life-size, for the terrace in front of the Congonhas do Campo sanctuary. He took up the old theme of the Dispute of the Prophets, revivifying the exhausted topic by infusing into it an expressionistic force reminiscent of the Middle Ages. For the costumes and figure types he found inspiration in a series of Florentine copper engravings from about 1470, which retained some flavour of the oriental dress worn by the Byzantine contingent to the Council of Florence between 1439 and 1442.