Mendelssohn probably began writing his third oratorio in early 1847 based on a libretto by Baron Christian Carl Josias von Bunsen titled “Erde, Hölle und Himmel” (Earth, Hell and Heaven), which is most likely no longer extant. However, his preoccupation with the subject, manifested in verbal drafts, concrete plans and an active search for an appropriate textual basis, can be traced back to 1839, more than seven years before the premiere of “Elijah”, his second oratorio.

There are no written s...