Bust of Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy

On November 4 1847, the composer Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy died in Leipzig at the age of only 38, after sufferiing several strokes. The family had had a death mask taken and asked Rietschel to come and look at the dead man himself once in order to do a bust. The bust was completed by the end of January 1848. Rietschel created an extraordinarily lifelike and individual portrait of the composer.

Listen to an example of Mendelssohn's piano music.