Virgin of the Rosary (Virgen del Rosario)

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Virgin of the Rosary (Virgen del Rosario)

Guatemala, circa 1750-1800
Sculpture
Polychromed and gilded wood, and glass
11 7/16 × 5 3/4 × 4 in. (29.1 × 14.6 × 10.2 cm)
Purchased with funds provided by the Bernard and Edith Lewin Collection of Mexican Art Deaccession Fund (M.2007.159)
Not currently on public view

Provenance

Private collection, Germany; Hampel Fine Art Auctions, Munich, March 24, 2007, lot 974; Simois Gestión de Arte SL, Madrid, 2007; LACMA, 2007.

Label

The devotion of Our Lady of the Rosary was introduced in Guatemala in the sixteenth century.

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The devotion of Our Lady of the Rosary was introduced in Guatemala in the sixteenth century. A famed sculpture of the Virgin was venerated in the church of Santo Domingo in Antigua and later in Guatemala City, becoming an important reference for artists. This small image, designed for private devotion, is decorated with intricate estofados (pictorial emulations of fine fabrics). The signature on the back corresponds to the polychromer—a rare detail pointing to a pride in craft.


From exhibition Archive of the World, 2022 (for more information see the catalogue entry by Pablo F. Amador Marrero in the accompanying publication, cat. no. 27, pp. 136–38)
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Bibliography

  • Katzew, Ilona, ed. Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800: Highlights from LACMA’s Collection. Exh. Cat. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art; New York: DelMonico Books/D.A.P., 2022.

Exhibition history

  • Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800*** Los Angeles, CA, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, June 12, 2022 - October 30, 2022
  • Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800*** Nashville, TN, Frist Art Museum, October 20, 2023 - January 28, 2024