Newly discovered art in Cathedral of St. Paul connect Capecchi family across centuries
ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Cathedral of St. Paul recently discovered some of the treasured history behind its artwork. It starts with a teenage sculptor from Italy who traveled to the capital city in the early 1900s.
His grandsons are now sharing untold stories about an artist remembered as the cathedral's Michelangelo.
The Capecchi cousins — Jerry and brothers Mark and Paul — say they feel at home in the cathedral.
"This place is incredible. It's always been a family jewel to us," Mark Capecchi said.
"It's got so many memories back from our grandpa, who we call nonno," Paul Capecchi said.
Their nonno, Joseph A. Capecchi, arrived in St. Paul in 1906 at age 17, a time when only the Cathedral's foundation existed.
"He had heard there was opportunity in the new world. He was young. He wanted to explore, so he came over as a young sculpting apprentice," Jerry Capecchi said.
As the Cathedral took shape, Joseph A. Capecchi's footprint on the interior grew.
"Catholic churches have what we call stations of the cross. There are 14 stations. He modeled the interior in clay and then they were executed in bronze," Jerry Capecchi said.
"The stipulations were when they were finished all of the molds had to be broken so that no other building in the world would have the same stations," Mark Capecchi said.
Joseph A. Capecchi sculpted four lunettes, the crescents above the doors. But it's newly-discovered sketches of mosaics that left the cousins in awe.
"My grandfather would tell me aren't those beautiful mosaics? But he'd never tell me it was his design," Mark Capecchi said.
They learned this week they were his. Their nonno had sent his sketches to a Vatican artisan who created the mosaics you see today.
"To see them up against the actual work is … it just brings it all together," Jerry Capecchi said.
And the colors of the dome, Joseph A. Capecchi had a hand in those as well. It was bare until he created this colorful drawing.
"You really think it was always that way but he really had a creative mind. To realize what colors would make the Cathedral come together the way it is today," Paul Capecchi said.
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Joseph A. Capecchi would go from apprentice to president of the company, and three generations would work inside the cathedral.
His sons painted his vision for the dome in the 1950s, and after a basement fire in the 1970s, Joseph A. Capecchi's grandsons worked on scaffolding to wash and repaint the dome.
"I was in awe. I'm in awe, and that's why '76 was so special, the three of us working here," Jerry Capecchi said.
"He was always very interested and would pepper us with questions on who did what. And it made it a lot of fun for us," Paul Capecchi said.
It's a family legacy that lives on.
"It's the reason our family is here. The reason our family is in the United States and in Minnesota is this building," Jerry Capecchi said.
The cousins will host a lecture and art presentation at the cathedral on Monday. Learn more about the fundraiser for the cathedral's ongoing restoration here.