Christ | CristoChrist at the Column This subject represents the scourging of Christ at the column during the night before he was crucified. He is tied to a column and bleeds from the wounds inflicted by his scourging. Return to the retablo of Christ at the Column. The Eucharistic Man This subject does not represent a historical event. Rather, it refers to the sacrament of the Eucharist, through which Christ’s body and blood are manifested in the bread and wine that are consecrated in the Mass. The vine and its grapes symbolize Christ’s blood, which also pours from his body into the fountain-like container below him. The presence of the lambs alludes to Christ’s role as the sacrificial lamb, and their number, seven, refers to the seven sacraments, of which the Eucharist is one. Pictorial subjects that related to the Eucharist became common during the Counter-Reformation in the late 16th century, because they distinguished Catholic belief from Protestantism. Such subjects continued to be popular in subsequent centuries. Return to the retablo of the Eucharistic Man. Holy Child of Atocha The holy Christ Child of Atocha is one of the most common images in 19th-century retablo art. The devotion originated in Atocha, Spain, where there is a shrine dedicated to the Virgin of Atocha, who holds the Christ child in her arms. Devotion to the child of Atocha—apart from the Virgin—originated in the late Middle Ages when the town of Atocha was held by the Moors. At that time, the jailers of the Moorish prison in which Christians were held did not allow anyone but children to visit the prisoners. Legend tells that one day there appeared at the prison a young child dressed as a pilgrim and carrying a basket of bread and a gourd of water. He entered the prison to feed the Christian prisoners, and no matter how many partook of the bread and water, the containers were never emptied. The even greater miracle was that the prisoners were not only nourished in body, but upon tasting the bread and water, were filled with an overwhelming peace. This devotion was brought at an uncertain date to the town of Plateros, near Fresnillo in the state of Zacatecas. After miracles related to the Santo Niño’s image began to occur in the early 19th century, devotion spread very rapidly, traveling as far north as what is now the state of New Mexico in the United States. The iconography of the Holy Child of Atocha refers to the miracle legend. The seated child is dressed as a pilgrim with a feathered hat and a pilgrim’s staff, at the end of which is tied a bundle that contains the pilgrim’s few possessions. In his right hand, the child holds a basket of flowers, referring to the basket of bread from the story. On either side is a vase of flowers. Sometimes (though not here) there are shackles lying at his feet, alluding to the prisoners to whom he came to offer food and solace. Return to the retablo of the Holy Child of Atocha. The Holy Family The subject of the Holy Family—that is, Jesus and his parents Mary and Joseph—is not based on a specific incident from the New Testament, but rather serves as an exemplary family for the faithful to emulate. The child Jesus stands between his parents, each of whom holds one of his arms. Mary is usually dressed in a red robe and a blue mantle. St. Joseph typically wears a green robe and a yellow cloak, and holds a blossoming rod in his left hand. The latter refers to the apocryphal story in which his blooming staff won him Mary’s hand in marriage. All of these iconographic elements are present in this retablo. In retablos of the Holy Family, the dove of the Holy Spirit always hovers above the Christ child. God the Father is not usually present. However, in this retablo, he is depicted half-length in the clouds, completing the Trinity of Father, Holy Spirit, and Son. Return to the retablo of the Holy Family. Holy Trinity Catholic doctrine explains God in three persons: God the Father, God the Son (or Christ), and God the Holy Spirit. In this print, the Father appears as an elderly man, the Son appears with his cross, and the Holy Spirit appears as a dove. In 19th-century retablos in Mexico, the three persons were usually depicted as three identical males, despite the fact that the Vatican specifically banned this manner of representing the Trinity. Return to the framed print of the Holy Trinity. The Powerful Hand Return to the retablo of The Powerful Hand. Sacred Heart of Jesus The Sacred Heart of Jesus symbolizes Christ’s suffering for the world, as indicated by the crown of thorns that encircles the heart and by the cross that surmounts it. The image also has Eucharistic allusions. This devotion was popularized by Italian Jesuits in the 19th century. Return to the ex-voto to the |
Virgin | VirgenOur Lady of Guadalupe According to the legend, the Virgin of Guadalupe appeared to the Indian neophyte Juan Diego in December 1531—barely 10 years after Cortes’s conquest of the Aztecs—near Tepeyac hill, just north of Mexico City. She instructed him to inform the bishop of Mexico that she wished a temple to be built for her on the spot. The bishop was skeptical and asked for a sign. When Juan Diego reported this to the Virgin, she told him to pick flowers from the top of the hill, which he folded up in his cloak and delivered to the bishop. When Juan Diego unfurled his cloak, the roses fell to the floor and the bishop, his attendants, and the Indian saw the image of the Virgin miraculously imprinted on the cloth. Although there is some uncertainty about the origin of the cult of the Virgin of Guadalupe, it is definitely known that a shrine dedicated to her, with a painted image, was established near Tepeyac by the 1550s. Devotion to the Virgin of Guadalupe developed steadily over the succeeding centuries, and the Virgin’s image continues to be venerated till the present day. Most paintings of Guadalupe, including 19th-century retablo paintings, reproduce the basic image as it appears on the original cloth. The Virgin stands on an upturned crescent moon, folds her hands in front of her chest, and looks down to her right. She is slightly dark and wears a red robe and a blue cloak on which are imprinted golden stars. She is upheld by an angel with outstretched arms and is surrounded by golden sun rays and by a mandorla (an almond-shaped “body halo”). She is usually crowned. Variations in Guadalupan iconography are found in the elements outside the mandorla. Often, as here, she is surrounded by flowers. Other decorative elements or the scenes of her apparitions to Juan Diego may also be depicted. Return to the retablo of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Our Lady of Juquila The Virgin of Juquila is revered at a shrine in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico. Return to the framed print of Our Lady of Juquila. Our Lady of San Juan de los Lagos The town of San Juan de los Lagos is located in the state of Jalisco, approximately 120 kilometers northeast of Guadalajara. In this town is the shrine to Our Lady of San Juan de los Lagos, the second most notable shrine to the Virgin (after Guadalupe) in Mexico. The story of the Virgin of San Juan begins in 1542, when a Spanish priest brought an image of the Virgin of the Immaculate Conception to the village. A legend recounts that, in 1623, an Indian girl fell gravely ill, and her death was imminent. However, after her parents earnestly prayed to the Virgin, their daughter was saved. After this event, devotion and pilgrimages to the Virgin steadily increased. The Virgin acquired her own local identity as Our Lady of San Juan de los Lagos, separate from her original identity as the Immaculate Conception. The Virgin of San Juan de los Lagos receives thousands of votive paintings from devotees whose prayers she has answered. In 1836, the Pope ordered that a special room be constructed to house the votive offerings that were brought to the Virgin. This room was consecrated by the Archbishop of Guadalajara in 1884. It is located to the right of the main altar and is covered from floor to ceiling with votive paintings and other offerings. Return to the ex-votos to Our Lady of Socabón Our Lady of Socabón is an advocation of the Virgin Mary revered in Oruro, Bolivia. She is the patroness of the miners of the region. During the annual Carnival, thousand of devotees come to pay their respects to the Virgin of Socabón. Return to the retablo of Our Lady of Socabón. Our Lady of Zapopan The Virgin of Zapopan has been revered, for her miraculous aid, since very early in the colonial era in the former Indian village of Zapopan, now a neighborhood in the metropolis of Guadalajara. Return to the ex-voto to Our Lady of Zapopan. Our Lady, Refuge of Sinners Our Lady, Refuge of Sinners was the most popular of all 19th-century retablo subjects. The original image of Our Lady, Refuge of Sinners was painted in the early 18th century for an altar formerly in Frascati, Italy. Jesuit missionaries brought a copy of this painting to Zacatecas, Mexico in 1719. Devotion to this Virgin developed rapidly. The iconography of this Virgin is very consistent. She appears half-length on a bank of clouds. She is crowned and haloed by a ring of twelve stars (or sometimes flowers). She wears a red gown and a blue cape, to which are attached the monograms IHS (for Jesus) and MA (for Maria, or Ave Maria). She holds the Christ Child on her left. The child is covered in a gauzy garment. Both mother and child are crowned.Return to the retablo of Pietà, or the Lamentation This subject depicts the Virgin Mary mourning over the dead body of her son Jesus, after he has been taken down from the cross. In the Pietà subject in retablo art, a sword pierces the Virgin’s heart, symbolizing her sorrow. Surrounding the two figures are various implements and symbols of Christ’s passion, such as the nails that held him to the cross and the cock that crowed just after Saint Peter’s denial. Return to the retablo of the Pietà. This image relates to the event of the Annunciation described in St. Luke’s gospel (1:26-38), in which the angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she would be the Mother of Christ. Because she was a virgin, this conception would occur by the power of the Holy Spirit that would come upon her. In this retablo subject, the Holy Spirit, pictured as a dove, appears over Mary’s heart. She is shown as a young girl wearing a crown of flowers and holding in her crossed arms a staff (or in this case, two staffs) of lilies that symbolize her purity. Sometimes she wears earrings and a necklace. Return to the retablo of the Soul of Mary. |
Saints | SantosSaint Anthony of Padua Saint Anthony of Padua (1195-1231) was born in Lisbon and early joined the Augustinian Order. However, he transferred to the Franciscans in 1221. He settled in Padua in 1226, where he was known as a brilliant preacher. He died in 1231, exhausted by his work on behalf of the poor. In retablo paintings, Anthony is dressed in a brown or blue Franciscan habit (the latter color sometimes worn by Spanish Franciscans in honor of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin), holding a lily branch that represents his purity, and supporting the Christ child on his other arm. The latter refers to an incident that occurred when Saint Anthony was lodging at a guest house. During the night, his host noticed a light pouring out from under the door. Peeking through the keyhole, he saw that the source of the light was the Christ child seated in the saint’s arms. Return to the retablo of Saint Anthony of Padua. Saint Francis of Assisi Saint Francis of Assisi (1181-1226) is perhaps the most famous saint in Christian history. After leading an extravagant and carefree youth, he experienced a religious conversion around 1206. Subsequently, he dedicated himself to a life of poverty and prayer. A number of followers gathered around him, leading to the establishment of the rule of the Franciscan Order in 1210. Two years later, Saint Clare joined him in establishing an order for women. In 1219, Francis undertook an unsuccessful journey to Egypt to convert the Muslim Sultan there. Later, as members of his order began to lessen the severity of his rule, he mostly retired from practical management of the order by 1223. That year he set up a crèche at Christmas, a practice that has been widespread in Christianity ever since. In 1224 he miraculously received the stigmata, that is, the identical wounds in his hands and feet that Christ received at the crucifixion. Francis died in 1226 in Assisi. The somewhat unusual depiction of Saint Francis presented in this ex-voto is based on an image in a church in Charcas, San Luis Potosí. Return to the ex-voto to Saint Francis of Assisi. Saint Francis of Paula Saint Francis of Paula (1416-1507) was born in Italy, where he joined the Franciscan Order as a young man. In 1436, he established a community that in 1474 was approved by the Pope as the Order of Hermits of Saint Francis of Assisi. Many healing miracles were credited to him, for which reason he was called to France by the dying King Louis XI. Louis’s son, Charles VIII, built several monasteries for the friar’s Order in France, where he remained the rest of his life. In retablo art, Francis of Paula is shown as a bearded elderly man dressed in a brown robe. Small flames are seen near his hands, referring to several incidents in his life that suggest an immunity to fire. Usually present is a lamb in a fiery furnace, or sometimes the lamb alone. The source of this iconography is unknown, although it perhaps relates to a combination of Francis’s association with fire and a reference to Christ as the sacrificial lamb. Above the saint is the word “caridad” (or its Latin equivalent, “caritas,” that is, love or charity) surrounded by flames. Return to the retablo of Saint Francis de Paula. Saint Hyacinth (1185-1257) was born in Poland and entered the Dominican Order in Rome around 1217. He spent much of his life evangelizing in northern Europe, including Scandinavia, Prussia, and Lithuania. His iconography in retablos relates to a story in which he entered a burning church to rescue the statue of the Madonna and Child. In paintings he stands in his black-and-white Dominican habit outside the church, holding the statue in his left arm. The statue is grey, having been charred by the flames. Return to the retablo of Saint Hyacinth. Saint Jerome (342-420) was born in Dalmatia, studied in Rome where he was converted to Christianity, became an ascetic, and eventually settled in Antioch. He spent his religious career engaged in various ecclesiastical controversies, translating the Bible into Latin, and engaging in ascetic practices. He died in Bethlehem in 420 and is venerated as a Doctor of the Church. There are several iconographies for Saint Jerome, depending on which aspect of his life the artist chooses to represent. In retablo painting, his asceticism is typically highlighted. The saint is shown praying before a crucifix in the wilderness. Also present are a skull, symbolizing his contemplation of the transience of life; a book, symbolizing his learning; a scourge, symbolizing his practices of penance; and a raven with a loaf of bread, referring to an incident that occurred during his period of austerity. Frequently included are a lion, which he tamed during his time in the wilderness, and a blaring horn, referring to his hearing the Lord’s voice instructing him to reject worldliness. Return to the retablo of Saint Jerome. Saint Joseph was the earthly father of Jesus. Devotion to Saint Joseph grew in the later Middle Ages, and especially during the Catholic Counter-Reformation (beginning in the mid-16th century). Saint Joseph is depicted in several ways in 19th-century retablo art. In one common way, he appears as a man in his prime, standing, holding the Christ child in one arm, and holding a flowering staff in the other. This latter refers to the apocryphal legend related to his betrothal to Mary. Along with the other suitors, Joseph brought his staff to the temple. When his staff blossomed with flowers, he was chosen to be the husband of Mary. Return to the New Mexico retablo of Saint Joseph. The Archangel Michael is the protector of the Church. Saint Michael is typically shown dressed in chain mail and helmet, or some other sort of military attire. In his left hand he holds a balance with which he weighs men’s souls after their death; in his right hand he holds a sword with which he overcomes the devil. Return to the ex-voto to Saint Michael. Saint Ramon the Unborn Saint Ramon was born in Spain around 1204. His nickname is derived from the fact that he was born by cesarean section after his mother died. He joined the Mercederian Order, whose principal function was to ransom Christian prisoners from the Moors during the time of Moorish occupation of Spain. At one time, running out of ransom money, he exchanged himself for another Christian prisoner. Because of his evangelizing in prison, he was tortured. When this did not stop his preaching, the Moorish governor had his lips pierced and closed with a padlock. He returned to Barcelona in 1239, but died the following year en route to Rome. Saint Ramon is depicted wearing the attire of a Mercedarian cardinal. He has a padlock on his mouth, or marks that indicate his pierced lips. He holds a palm with three encircling crowns that refer to his chastity, eloquence, and martyrdom (although, to be precise, he was only tortured, not martyred). He holds a monstrance, either indicating his preaching the Eucharist while in the Moorish prison, or referring to a legend that he received communion from an angel at the time of his death. Return to the retablo of San Ramon. Saint Rita of Casia When she was 12 years old, Saint Rita (1381-1457) was married against her will to a man with whom she spent 18 unhappy years, and with whom she had two sons. After her husband was killed in a brawl, her two sons vowed to avenge their father’s death. However, the sons themselves died before they could enact their vengeance, perhaps due to Rita’s prayers that they die rather than commit such a mortal sin. In 1413, she entered an Augustinian convent, where she was known for her austerities and penances. After listening to an eloquent sermon by Saint James della Marca on Christ’s crown of thorns, she had the miraculous imprinting of a thorn wound on her forehead while praying before a crucifix. Because of the presence of this wound, she lived most of the rest of her life as a recluse. The iconography of Saint Rita especially includes the wound on her forehead. She often holds the crucifix which she contemplated, or a skull symbolizing her meditation on the transitoriness of life, or both. She is dressed in the habit of an Augustinian nun. In many retablos, she is accompanied by two smaller male figures kneeling at her feet. These are presumably her sons, although some scholars believe they are two other saints, given the apparent palms of martyrdom that they hold. In some retablos, she stands next to a table. Return to the retablo of Born in France around 1295, Saint Roche went on pilgrimage to Rome and remained in Italy, serving victims of the plague. He contracted the plague himself, but was miraculously saved through the intervention of a dog. His iconography includes the dog at his plague-marked feet or legs, and the pilgrim’s staff (with its small bundle of possessions) that he holds in his hand. Saint Roche was unjustly incarcerated and died in prison in 1378. Return to the wood retablo of Saint Roche. |