In the heart of Naples, Italy, within the hallowed walls of the Cappella Sansevero, stands one of the most breathtaking sculptures ever created: The Release from Deception (Italian: Il Disinganno), crafted by Genoese sculptor Francesco Queirolo between 1752 and 1759. This awe-inspiring work is carved from a single block of marble. Its intricate details, profound symbolism, and sheer ambition continue to captivate art enthusiasts and scholars alike.

Commissioned by Raimondo di Sangro, Prince of Sansevero, The Release from Deception was created to honor his father, Antonio di Sangro, Duke of Torremaggiore, and to adorn the family’s private chapel, the Cappella Sansevero. Built in the late 16th century by John Francesco di Sangro, the chapel served as a family burial site by 1613, with living relatives commissioning sculptures to memorialize the deceased.

Queirolo’s masterpiece, completed in 1754, stands among 30 other works of art in the chapel, including the renowned Veiled Christ (1753) by Giuseppe Sanmartino and Veiled Truth (1750) by Antonio Corradini. Yet, it is Queirolo’s sculpture that often steals the spotlight due to its most striking feature: an exquisitely carved marble net.

The sculpture depicts an allegorical and biblical scene, featuring two figures: an angel and a fisherman. The angel, standing atop a globe, gently frees the fisherman from a knotted fishing net, symbolizing liberation from sin and ignorance. At the fisherman’s feet lies an open Bible, its pages inscribed with a Latin passage: “I will break thy chain, the chain of the darkness and long night of which thou art a slave so that thou might not be condemned with this world.” This inscription reinforces the sculpture’s central theme of spiritual emancipation. The angel, adorned with a small flame on its forehead—symbolizing the human intellect—points to the globe, representing worldly passions, while assisting the man in his struggle for freedom

Queirolo’s most stunning achievement is the marble net, carved with such precision that it appears almost translucent. Crafted over seven years without assistants, this delicate feature awed even skilled craftsmen, who feared polishing it might break the fragile stone. Using tools like chisels and drills, Queirolo transformed marble into a fluid, lifelike form, earning praise as a pinnacle of stonemasonry.

The sculpture’s net, Bible, and bas-relief of Jesus healing the blind evoke the human quest for truth. Visitors to the Sansevero Chapel Museum marvel at its intricacy.