to Cardinal Gasparri as both Cardinal Secretary of State and Camerlengo was of course Eugenio Cardinal Pacelli. The link to this photo was sent in by a reader (thanks Gregor!), who also pointed out that a) the photo was colored after being developed and b) the map in the background looks a bit like it shows the most western part of Germany and might therefore have been taken in the nunciature in Berlin.
2 comments:
I had a very similar picture on my site that I received from someone from Argentina. This person was helping me find pictures of Cardinal Pacelli when he went to Buenos Aires for the Int. Eucharistic Congress in 1934.
I noticed then that the colors of the painting/picture did not seem to match those of a Cardinal. The biretta is purple, the cappa manga is red and the cassock is black.
If we base it on the biretta, he was at the time a Bishop; however, this biretta does not seem to have a pom-pon, which would make him a Cardinal, which is what he was when he went to Argentina as Papal Legate a latere.
If we base it on the color of the cassock, what is he? Not a Cardinal, not a Bishop... what? But he has a ring, so he has to be a Prelate.
I personally, do not think that this was taken in Germany as the person who sent me this picture took it from a book that was only about the Eucharistic Congress in Argentina (1934) by which time Pacelli was a Cardinal - in this case, a Cardinal Legatus a latere.
Also, here he does not look too young.
I think that the person who retouched this picture/painting was not aware of the colors of prelatical dress.
Obviously a cardinal's biretta, therefore cardinal. The confusion is created by the added colour and texture. What a nice pic, though.
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