Final answer:
The stone figure on Teresa's headstone is a marble sculpture of St. Teresa in the midst of a divine vision, part of Bernini's Ecstasy of Saint Teresa, which artistically utilizes light to create an illusion of celestial rays.
Step-by-step explanation:
The type of stone figure on Teresa's headstone is a representation of a sculpture of St. Teresa that embodies a vision she once had.
This vision was of an angel descending with a fiery arrow, an emblem of divine love. The sculpture is part of a larger artistic work by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, known for the theatrical Ecstasy of Saint Teresa, a centerpiece in the Church of Santa Maria della Vittoria in Rome.
Here, Teresa is depicted floating on a cloud carved from brilliant white marble, capturing the moment before the angel's dart strikes her.
Bernini masterfully used light to enhance the piece, with a hidden window casting rays upon the golden streams behind the statue, giving it the illusion of celestial illumination.
Additional figures in the composition include marble members of the Cornaro family, arranged as if they are spectating Teresa's ecstasy from opera boxes.
These figures are shown engaged in conversation or prayer, contributing to the overall theatricality of the scene.
Throughout art history, the use of spolia, such as in the case of the reliquary statue of Sainte-Foy, can be noted where materials are repurposed for new artistic creations, linking them with historical significance as seen in the repurposed Roman statue head for Sainte-Foy's reliquary.