Francesco Mochi came from a town located near Florence, and the influence of Florentine Mannerism, especially of the well-known in the city Giambologna is visible in his early works. Apart from the aforementioned artist his works were also greatly influenced by Camillo Mariani. It was his workshop that Mochi worked in after coming to Rome, shortly prior to the year 1600, helping him in the creation of sculptures for the Church of San Bernardo alle terme and decorations of the Cappella Paolina in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. However, he achieved fame by completing works in Piacenza for his promoter Mario Farnese. Sculpting, and what was a rarity at the time casting in bronze the equestrian statues of two representatives of the Farnese family, he exhibited talent and was recognized as a master in displaying fleeting lighting effects and psychological expression. It should come as no surprise that, the famed and valued sculptor after coming to Rome, assumed that he would be properly recognized. His fully mature work is the subtle figure of St. Martha, completed for the Church of Sant’Andrea della Valle, at the commission of Cardinal Maffeo Barberini, who valued his talent. When the cardinal became pope (as Urban VIII), he called him into a group aiding Bernini, in creating the decorations of the four pillars supporting the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica (San Pietro in Vaticano). Mochi was entrusted with completing the figure of St. Veronica, which in a long preparatory process, he polished, refined and pampered, completely in opposition to Bernini, who sculpted the statue of St. Longinus, but lacked the time for any time-consuming embellishing procedures. The tension between these two artists, competing for the pope’s attention, is perhaps best illustrated by what happened during the unveiling of the statue of St. Veronica, which prior to its official showing aroused the admiration of not only Urban VIII, but a whole slew of artists, and even poets, who immortalized its beauty in the written word. Reportedly, Bernini looked with skepticism at the outstanding work of his competitor, praised it with reserve and maliciously asked, where did the wind billowing Veronica’s veil come from? “From cracks in the dome”, was to have been Mochi’s response which was an allusion to the cracks, which appeared during the sculpting of the niches, into which Bernini planned to insert four enormous-sized sculptures of saints (apart from Longinus and Veronica, these were to be St. Andrew and St. Helena). Another reason for this mutual dislike was money – while Bernini received 5 thousand scudos for his Longinus, Mochi, as well as the artists responsible for completing the remaining sculptures received only 3 thousand scudos, despite the fact that the statue of Veronica, even today seems to be the most successful out of all the sculptures (not even taking into account the impeccable execution). This statue even acquired international fame, while cardinal Richelieu was so taken with it, that he invited the sculptor to come to Paris, but Mochi had no intention of leaving Rome.

It must be admitted that, not all of Mochi’s works were exceptional, which is shown by two statues which are still today found in the niches of the Porta del Popolo city gate and which contributed to a rapid fall from grace of this artist in Rome. Both St. Peter and St. Paul, were initially completed for the decoration of the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls (San Paolo fuori le mura), however they were so heavily disliked by the clients (which should come as no surprise), that they refused to pay the artist. Ultimately they found their place in the city gate, where for centuries they have rather coarsely been greeting guests coming to Rome. An even worse fate befell other sculptures completed by the artist – the Baptism of Christ group. Initially the statues of Christ and St. John the Baptist were to be placed in a representative location – in the main altar of the Church of San Giovanni dei Fiorentini. However, the artist did not finish this work, while after his death, the figures lay forgotten in the cellars of the founders in the Palazzo Falconieri, for nearly two hundered years, until the time when the Roman architect Giuseppe Valadier decided to place them on either side of the southern entryway onto the Ponte Milvio. Their separation makes the meaning behind the group rather unclear. In the XX century the original sculptures were restored, while their copies were placed at the bridge. Today the original sculptures can be admired in one of the chapels of the Basilica of San Giovanni dei Fiorentini.

Some of the more important works completed in Rome:

•     Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore

In the façade of the Paoline Chapel – the Statue of St. Matthew, 1612

•     Church of Sant’Andrea della Valle

Figure of St. Martha in the Barberini Chapel, 1612

•     Basilica of San Pietro in Vaticano

Statue of St. Veronica in the pillar under the dome, 1640

•     Porta del Popolo

Statues of SS. Peter and Paul, 1652                                                   

•     Basilica of San Giovanni dei Fiorentini

The Baptism of Christ group, 1644