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Collections

Francisco Martínez
Nun’s Badge with the Annunciation and Saints (Medallón de monja con la Anunciación y santos)circa 1750

Not on view
Oval painting in a metal frame depicting the Annunciation with a kneeling haloed woman, a winged angel, a descending dove, cloud-borne figures above, and four haloed saints below
Circular miniature painting, cropped view, showing a crowned, haloed female figure in pink and gold robes holding a sword, with a Latin inscription in gold along a curved banner reading 'Franciscus Martinez Sancti Officij Notarius Fec...' A dark-robed figure appears at right; draped figures visible at top.
Circular miniature painting in a dark metal frame, partially cropped; a haloed woman in blue at lower center with hands raised, a haloed male figure holding a child and flowering stem above, a white dove mid-composition, and a robed figure in pink at upper right, rendered in delicate gouache or watercolor with fine detail on a cream ground.
Oval miniature painting, likely gouache or watercolor, depicting multiple religious figures on clouds. A central winged angel in gold and pink drapery holds a lily stem and gestures toward an open book. To the right, a robed figure in blue with a halo attends to small children. Additional haloed figures appear at upper and lower edges, with finely detailed figures in pink robes above.
Artist or Maker
Francisco Martínez
Mexico, 1687-1758
Title
Nun’s Badge with the Annunciation and Saints (Medallón de monja con la Anunciación y santos)
Date Made
circa 1750
Medium
Watercolor on vellum on paper, tortoiseshell frame
Dimensions
Framed: 7 1/2 × 6 1/2 in. (19.1 × 16.5 cm)
Credit Line
Purchased with funds provided by the Bernard and Edith Lewin Collection of Mexican Art Deaccession Fund
Accession Number
M.2015.142.1
Classification
Drawings
Collecting Area
Latin American Art
Curatorial Notes

This small-scale painting is a badge worn by nuns of the Order of the Immaculate Conception (also known as Conceptionists) in Mexico as part of their dress. Painted badges originated in Mexico in response to religious reforms introduced by the archbishop Francisco Manso y Zúñiga (ruled 1629-1635), who attempted to curtail the luxury and privilege of the convent lifestyle. He forbade nuns to wear shields made of gold, precious stones, and enamel. The nuns circumvented this rule by commissioning shields painted on copper or parchment, and set into frames made of tortoiseshell. Many of the badges were painted by the best artists of the day.

This badge is signed on a banderole "Martínez Sancti Officii Notarius Fecit" (Made by Francisco Martínez, notary of the Holy Office). Martínez was prominent painter from Mexico City who fulfilled many commissions for the Jesuits and was named notary of the Holly Tribunal – a prestigious title that points to his high social standing. The badge depicts the Annunciation and a host of saints, including Saints Joseph and John the Baptist flanking God the Father and the Holy Spirit; Saint Anthony (behind the angel); and Saints Catherine, Gertrude, and Jerome in the lower edge of the composition. Painted badges on copper are much more common than those on parchment or paper, of which only a few survive.


Ilona Katzew, Curator and Department Head, Latin American Art, 2015

Provenance
Private collection, Paris; Galerie Terrades, Paris, 1998; LACMA, 2015.
Selected Bibliography
  • Katzew, Ilona, ed. Painted in Mexico, 1700–1790: Pinxit Mexici. Exh. Cat. Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Mexico City: Fomento Cultural Banamex; New York: DelMonico Books/Prestel, 2017.
  • 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.
Selected Exhibition History
  • Painted in Mexico, 1700–1790: Pinxit Mexici . Sunday, November 19, 2017 - Sunday, March 18, 2018
  • Painted in Mexico, 1700–1790: Pinxit Mexici . Sunday, November 19, 2017 - Sunday, March 18, 2018
  • Painted in Mexico, 1700–1790: Pinxit Mexici . April 24 - July 22, 2018
  • Painted in Mexico, 1700–1790: Pinxit Mexici . April 24 - July 22, 2018
  • Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. June 12, 2022 - October 30, 2022
  • Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. June 12, 2022 - October 30, 2022
  • Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. October 20, 2023 - January 28, 2024
  • Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. October 20, 2023 - January 28, 2024
  • Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. June 22, 2024 - September 08, 2024
  • Archive of the World: Art and Imagination in Spanish America, 1500–1800. June 22, 2024 - September 08, 2024