The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 19, 2025

Study for The Blessed Alessandro Sauli

1663–1668

Pierre Puget

(French, 1620–1694)
France, made in Genoa, 17th century
terracotta
Overall: 69.7 cm (27 7/16 in.)
Andrew R. and Martha Holden Jennings Fund 1964.36
Location: 212 Baroque Painting and Sculpture

Did You Know?

Terracotta models, like this study for a sculpture, are also known as bozzetti or modelli.

Description

A famous preacher from an aristocratic family in Genoa, Sauli (1534-1591) spearheaded important Catholic reforms, including popular missions and restructuring the church to reach a broader spectrum of worshippers. This sculpture is a model for a large statue commissioned by the Sauli family for a Genoese church. Although the open book speaks to Sauli’s work as a reformer, his twisting body and facial expression indicate utter absorption in a deeply personal vision.
  • Possibly Marquesses Pallavicini (Genoa, Italy);
    Baudouin-Gounelle collection (Marseilles, France);
    Henri Dobler, 1863-1941 (Aix-en-Provence, France);
    Possibly art market (Paris, France);
    Blumka Gallery (New York, New York), sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art, 1964.
  • Hawley, Henry H. “Pierre Puget: Blessed Alessandro Sauli.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 52, no. 4 (April 1965): 101–105. Mentioned and reproduced: p. 101-105, figs. 1-2 www.jstor.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 116 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 116 archive.org
    Hawley, Henry. “Pierre Puget: Head of a Philosopher.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 57, no. 3 (March 1970): 79–80. Mentioned and reproduced: p. 79-80, fig. 1 www.jstor.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 173 archive.org
    May, Sally Ruth. Knockouts: a pocket guide. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2001. Reproduced: no38, p. 40 - 41
    Bober, Jonathan, Piero Boccardo, and Franco Boggero. Superbarocco: arte a Genova da Rubens a Magnasco. Milano : Skira, 2022. Reproduced: p. 272, fig. 3
  • Baroque Imagery. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 6, 1984-January 6, 1985).
    CMA 1984-1985: Baroque Imagery, cat. no. 10, pp. 30-31, repr. p. 30
    Juxtapositions. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (September 11-October 10, 1965).
    Year in Review (1964). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 8, 1964-January 31, 1965).
    CMA 1964: "Year in Review, 1964," CMA Bulletin, LI, no. 10 (December 1964), cat. no. 4, illus.
  • {{cite web|title=Study for The Blessed Alessandro Sauli|url=false|author=Pierre Puget|year=1663–1668|access-date=19 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1964.36